Never Leave
by iDevalu
Summary: Frau and Teito are headed back to Barsburg Church after a long irritating trip together. But as their relationship seems to be strained, they realize that they can't see themselves without the other. Rated T for future chapters.
1. Differences

**Disclaimer - I own nothing. I wish I did… Damn. Why didn't I think of it first? **

**A/N: My first **_**ever **_**fan-fic! Yay! xD -Ahem****– ****Okay, I warn you now, new readers: I HAVE NO IDEA HOW ANY OF THESE PEOPLE LOOK BESIDES BLACK AND WHITE. I read the manga, not the anime. And even then, I don't catch up on the manga like I'm suppose to. Don't blame me. I got's no internet at home. :P Besides the obvious of Teito and Frau, the rest of the people I make up from what I see on the manga covers. If I mistake anyone with a different eye color or hair color, my mistake. I sincerely apologize. Well, my fic doesn't really…**_**stick**_** to the original story line. And…some of it I make it up as I go seeing that the manga hasn't really answered any of the more important questions as in: How did Frau die? Dx Well, Ayanami has an active part in this fic, don't like: READ ELSE WHERE! As with **_**many **_**fictions, characters will not always remain in character. Sorry. But…I don't think I completely butcher them when I OOc them…I think.**

**Chapter One**

**Differences**

Large emerald eyes glared on the wooden door. A clock beside him on a nightstand ticked away the seconds in an agonizing slow rhythm and somewhere beyond the room, the _drip, drip_ of a leaky faucet added to the annoyingly quiet ambiance. He pulled the blanket he was bundled in over his eyes, leaving only his deep chocolate brown hair to endure the crisp midnight air.

It had been hours Teito's traveling companion had left the vicinity, for reasons he rather not know, and still no sign of him.

Teito grumbled loudly, pulling the green cover over his head entirely. Why was he waiting for the damn perverted bishop anyways? The teen needed his sleep, especially since sleep was one thing that was not coming to him easily. How many restless nights has he been having so far?

Ever since this stupid trip began, to a place Teito already forgot, he had been plagued by nightmares.

One night he awoke screaming; Teito rubbed his throat remembering that night. He could still feel his throat burning.

That dream was about one of the worst he had and the brunette could not recall what the dream was about, though he had a _vague_ feeling that it was about Ayanami and Mikage, how could it not be? Either way, he knew it was bad enough to startle the blue eyed priest. But he couldn't ask now, not that he would ever admit as to having nightmares. It was a weak thing to admit to something like that. Getting a nightmare meant that something scared you and you had no courage to conquer it. Teito had courage, plenty of courage. He did not need anyone doubting that.

A soft yawn escaped him as sleep finally decided to creep up on him, gently closing his eyes. Teito could have sworn he heard a clicking noise, but decided that it was nothing more than his little pink bundle of fur and feathers. Another yawn and into sleep he drifted into.

x-x-x

A blunt object crash landed on the young teen's bed, easily startling him from his light sleep. He shot up from the bed, prepared for anything, when he noticed a bag on his bed, _his_ bag.

Teito looked up to meet with crystal blue eyes, a frown easily taking over his childish features as he noticed the damn mocking grin on the bishop.

"Upn'attem, brat. Time to go."

"Did you just get in?" The teen yelled as he, obediently, made his way towards his bag and began pulling out clean clothes.

Frau gave an inaudible chuckle as he made his way across their motel room to collect his own bag from the bathroom; he loved these small, little victories when the brat actually listened to him. Very small, _little_ victories though.

As soon as the blond disappeared into the restroom, Teito was half dressed, already pulling his sleeping shirt off to replace with another. The bishop walked out.

"Hurry it up, brat. We're wastin' time. Geez, you dress as fast as a girl does," the blond groaned, though the glare he got in return told him that Teito wasn't in the mood for teasing. _Damn brat; looks like someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed. He needs to learn how to act like a kid, trying to be all mature and shit…_, he thought, throwing his own bag towards the door. He was rewarded with the sound of rattling wood, the door to shaking slightly. Frau winced. If it broke, he would pay.

"Well excuse me! I didn't wake up already dressed!" A small tint of red shaded the teen's cheeks as he shoved all his anger, and clothing, into the small bag, a bag that contained only two pairs of clothes (three counting the ones on his back), and pajamas. It was all he owned.

After the packing finished, Teito threw the bag at his mentor, hoping to catch him off guard but fussed when the blond caught it as if he was expecting it.

"Better next time, kid. Now let's move!" proclaimed the bishop as he smirked, turning to the door. The kid was so easy to rile up, the high points of his day were the kid's mood swings. That or a beautiful woman.

Frau was near ready to open the door when Teito shot past him, opening the door to run out. The bishop grumbled, picking up his own bag and made his way out into the cool dawn air. A pink blob of fur suddenly jumped onto his oddly spiked blond hair, taking liberty in nibbling it between tiny fangs.

"Mikage! Don't play with the lecher!" Teito turned to glare at the blond, the pink fyulong jumped from his perch and into the hands of the younger male. Teito quickly turned and ran to the hawkzile.

"This is going to be a long trip," sighed Frau. So much for his little victory to brighten up his day.

x-x-x

The loud humming hawkzile was the only sound making any sort of disturbance to the silence hanging around the group of sour looking travelers.

The entire ride had been dead silent, except for a few growls from the fyulong, who only seemed to want to end the silence too.

Frau was lost in deep thought, his mind returning to the past, yesterday actually. It was not like he wanted to think about it but it bothered him, if only slightly. While he was out, stalking the night as only he can do, a vision passed through his mind. Almost like if someone slipped in a video, pausing on his own world to play this unknown tape on fast forward. Frau shook his head, focusing on the road again.

The vehicle hovered over the freshly fallen snow; a line of trees outlined the perimeter of the forest nearby. The sun was clouded, adding more chill to the now snowing air.

Teito's jade eyes trailed to the bishops back. This trip was stretching their comfort lines to the point of breaking and Teito did not like it. Frau was out most of the night now, coming back in the strike of morning. It was not like Teito cared because he didn't, it was just…he shook his head. This was stupid, Frau was a grown man and he could take care of himself and do whatever he pleased. And that included not involving the teen in any of it. He sighed, turning to look at the scenery once more.

A tiny flake landed almost elegantly on Teito's nose, quickly melting into oblivion. His hand unknowingly reached out to the bishop, crumpling the fabric of the male's thin coat in his gloved hand. The white blanket of snow was near mesmerizing, almost as if it could purify the ground it rested upon. It reminded him of a home he could vaguely remember.

Frau felt the boy's small hand crumple his coat. He turned slightly and caught the once slave in his vision. The way Teito gazed out to the scenery, his large emerald eyes hazed over with some unknown emotion, was near heart-breaking. Thoughts of his vision flooded back into mind. This child knew death, was in close relationship with death, closer than anyone should be allowed to.

The silence surrounded them once more; the humming of the vehicle grew softer and softer. The road soon began to feel uneven.

Teito jolted suddenly, his other hand flying to grab the bishop's coat. He buried his face into the nook of the bishop's broad shoulders, slowly looking up to catch sight of two sapphire orbs. They blinked.

Another bump and the younger, once more, hid behind the bishop. He wondered why the road turned so rutted. His emerald eyes trailed upward again, seeing the ominous trail up ahead.

Teito's out of body feeling quickly fled; his brain ran on over-drive; the only function his body would allow was the use of inaudible words and the raising of his hand to point ahead.

Frau slowly came back to the real world as well, the noise of the hawkzile hitting rough road finally hit his ears. His head whipped around just in time to see the fall up ahead. Why it had no safety rail, he didn't know and cursed inwardly for the people who were responsible for this road.

His hands gripped tightly onto the handles, roaring the quite engine to life. Frau grunted as he forced the machinery to turn. The hawkzile protested to the sudden commands given to it, grunting as it spewed gravel.

The world stopped. Heavy breathing was going on with both males, Teito kept his grasp on the bishop while the other was lost in deep meaningless thought. Nothing moved. No one dared to move. The world suddenly felt like if a single thread of string supported it. Then the world suddenly started to tilt off to one side. The younger male's arms began to frail violently, feeling his weight shift in the wrong direction, his legs slipping off the seat. His eyes caught sight of the drop below, fear pulsing through his veins. No matter how forceful one can drill into their mind to be fearless at all costs, when faced with immediate death, all that becomes meaningless talk.

Teito was certain his death was below him when his own coat began to strangle him, suspending him in mid air. His head was buzzing with no real noise; everything was starting to turn dark around him. A low, rough grunt sounded above him; he looked up to catch sight of a very pissed off looking Frau.

How had he gotten himself into this? Frau replayed that one single thought over and over in his mind. He grunted once more, finally being able to pull up the teen. As he did so, the extra weight of the teen pushed him off to the other side. The priest soon found his leg was pinned underneath the hawkzile and the rest of him was trapped beneath a somewhat heavy teen.

The teen wheezed, trying his best to remove the thing that was strangling him just moments before. He felt utterly disoriented and just wanted to get away from the cliff as much as possible.

The older man, on the other hand, just wanted the boy off of him. With strong hands, he grabbed Teito's shoulders and threw him off to the side. A pile of snow scattered everywhere as the smaller fell, the seeping cold slipping through his clothing. He gave out a small yelp.

"Damn brat! You're too much trouble for what your damn worth!" In frustration, Frau kicked the hawkzile, finally succeeding in removing the contraption from atop his leg. He knew a bruise was going to appear, if not later today, tomorrow.

As soon as the words slipped from Frau's mouth, he immediately regretted them. He screwed his eyes shut, cursing lightly under his breath. Prying his eyes open, the blond turned to his traveling companion, guilt plagued him as he caught sight of the teen's passing expression.

Teito's eyes filled with a pain he knew all too well, the feeling of never being wanted, a feeling Teito never wanted to have and his only wish was that this certain emotion was killed long ago with the rest of them at the academy.

"Hey…kid…" Frau spoke almost uncertain.

"Shut up! Just shut up, Frau! If you don't want me around, fine! Not like I want to be around you! Just dump me off at the church and leave me there! Why do you drag me around anyways?" Deep down, Teito knew that he never wanted to hear that answer. Why did Frau bring him to these trips anyways? He truly was nothing but trouble. Teito struggled with his disorientation, pushing himself to his feet, completely ignoring the burning sensation in his eyes. He ran his sleeve across them, not wanting Frau to see him cry, _yet again_. It was stupid of him to even have feelings. So why…?

The teen turned on his heel and took off, his footing slipping slightly in the snow. _Stupid, stupid Frau!_

Teito's head suddenly jerked back; with awkward footing, he found his body doing a one-eighty. His boots slipped on the slick ice, unable to keep himself stable, sending him forward into what felt like a hard stone.

"Damn brat! If I wanted to get rid of you, I would have done it a long time ago! Stop acting like a little girl."

Teito hissed, realizing that his rock was none other than the perverted bishop. He pushed harshly against the blond's chest, hating the fact that Frau was so close to him. But strong arms wrapped around his small body, keeping him prisoner in Frau's hold, his face buried in the blond's chest.

"Frau! Let go! Let go, let go, lemme go!" Hot tears threaten to rise once more, just the fact that Frau had said it so causally, said that he was too much trouble than what he was worth, fear and other emotions rose up all too suddenly for the teen to handle. He wanted distance; he wanted time to compose himself.

The bishop could feel the hot tears that ran down the males face onto his chest, the light water soaking through the thin fabric of his shirt. Everything was wrong, the brat's response was wrong. He was suppose to yell, he was suppose to get furious and spew insults, throw punches, not this, defiantly not this.

"Brat, will you just shut up and listen to me!" Frau practically yelled into the younger male's ear. Teito froze, his eyes running with tears now. He stiffened, muscles aching but he said nothing, kept quiet as instructed.

"I'm not going to dump you off like baggage, okay…?"

It sounded like Frau wanted to say more but he remained silent. Teito shivered, feeling the cold even more as his own body was pressed against the bishop's, the thin materials of both coat and shirt did nothing to block out the cold weather, or the cold coming from Frau. The bishop must have realized this for he began to unclasp his hands, allowing the male to take a step back.

Teito turned his gaze to the floor, his entire body shaking. He hated feeling this weak, this vulnerable and it was only this one stupid man that made him feel that way. He ran a sleeve across his eyes once more, feeling them burn. They felt puffed too.

"…Let's get back on the hawkzile, alright? We should reach town before it starts getting dark."

The teen spoke no words; he simply turned and began to walk back, head lowered. The rest of the ride was kept in silence; even the pink fyulong did not utter a single growl.

x-x-x

"You lost my bag!"

The blond bishop raised his hands in defense, a guilty grin spread along his features. But the teen was far from being in a forgiving mood. Anger filled him, making him take on a shade of red.

"Was it my fault you let it drop into the gorge?"

"Yes! It was your fault, all your fault if you just-"

The blond gave a loud, exaggerated sigh, turning from the smaller male and began to walk down the streets of the market place.

After a long ride of silence, they made it to their next stop, a small city in which Frau did not bother learning the name of. It was a simple stop for them to rest and pick up supplies before returning to the Barsburg Church.

"Oi! Don't turn your back on me when we are still talking! Frau! Frau!"

A grin spread across Frau's face. Teito had always reminded him of a duckling, never straying too far from its mother. His blue eyes trailed along the markets shops, his mind wandering off. Why exactly did he get so distracted? It was not like he had never seen the brat get all emotional before. So why did it affect him that much?

He ran a hand through his golden hair, giving another loud sigh. A small body ran into him, causing his sigh to be cut off short. Frau's eyes trailed down to catch sight of the small teen rubbing his sore nose.

"Frau! Why'd you stop?"

Green eyes looked upward towards the tall man, caught in his sudden stare. Hesitant, Teito took a step back, suddenly feeling at a lost for words under the bishop's watch.

"W-what?" Teito could feel a small heat rise to his cheeks as the bishop continued to stare. He had never seen Frau looked so _concerned_, if that was the right word. Before he had time to utter another word, the blond began to reach over to him, placing his large hand on Teito's head. His fingers slowly combed through the boy's hair. It was a strange yet comforting feeling making Teito feel all the weirder. "F-Frau?"

**A/N: Petting! So, so cute~ Cute cliché numbero uno! :D Le Petting.**


	2. Come Back to Me

**Disclaimer – (Insert Disclaimer Here) Can you tell I'm too lazy to write it? xD (Not lazy enough, seeing how I waste time writing other stupid gibberish.)**

**A/N: …The title has nothing to do with the chapter ._.; Well, kinda. –lawl– I was hearing a song titled: "Come Back to Me" and I thought, kewl title for a chapter~ So…tada… Very creative, I know (- w -) Whatever! Just Read!**

**Chapter Two**

**Come Back to Me**

The light-headed feeling quickly dissolved in the bishop's head upon hearing a light squeak that emerged from the teen before him. His hand froze, not knowing how to continue this without looking guilty. Why _was_ he doing this? Nothing seemed to fit at all. Thinking never got him any place good, thinking always got him into trouble. That is why Frau is a man of action and at this point…he was begging his brain for an escape. Oh, the irony.

With a quick flick of his wrist, Frau relieved the boy from a single strand of hair on his head, his blue eyes pretending to examine the single piece of hair. He easily let the wind carry it off; amusing himself lightly with the expression the brunet gave.

Teito rubbed the top of his head vigorously. Though it was one single strand of hair, it pained as if Frau ripped out more. With the deadliest glare he could muster, Teito looked upward towards the bishop.

"Why'd you do that for?" Teito protested as he continued to rub his head.

The bishop gave a loud laugh, turning to continue his walk down the market street.

"Boy, you are getting old. Your head is riddled with white hairs." The best excuse he could come up with.

Teito followed after the priest, a slight growl emerging from his throat. Frau was acting suspicious, any idiot could see that.

"Frau! Stop being stup-." Once again, he ran into the blue-eyed male. With a light scowl, emerald eyes turned upwards to the male. "Now what?"

Frau had stopped in front of a vendor who was selling winter coats. It was still a long way to the Barsburg Church and the weather would just get colder. His eyes followed to the old plump woman standing behind the counter, she welcomed them with a smiling face and a warm hello.

"Ah. Can we get your miniature sized coat please?" The bishop requested with a serious look about his face.

Teito took on a shade of red; it was stupid of him to simply assume Frau was talking about him but he knew the bishop well enough that he would crack any short jokes when he could. With a light jump, the smaller teen laid a good smack on the side of that mess of blond hair. Frau winced slightly, a grin overtaking his serious expression.

"Okay, the next smaller size then." Frau replied with a slight laugh.

"Frau-." The brunette growled through clenched teeth.

The white haired woman gave a tiny laugh as she shuffled around coats of all sizes and styles. Some were fluffy while others water-resistant, some bright as a summer's day, others dark as a starless sky. After selecting one she assumed would be liked by the temperamental teen, she fluffed out the thick material and handed it to the bishop.

"This should fit the young man," she replied with a soft voice.

"This seems too big ma'am, do you anything sma-."

A swift elbow to the ribs and Frau's interrupted sentence hung in the air. He coughed slightly, the coat stolen by a brunet bandit.

Teito casually slipped on the coat. He outstretched his arms, taking a feel to the material.

Frau watched discreetly, a small smile taking form. As he watched the smaller male, he couldn't help but realize that Teito grew a couple inches since their first encounter. He was definitely getting older; soon he would be old enough to go out on his own. Soon he will be strong enough to fend for himself. Soon…Frau would not be needed anymore.

"Frau, what's wrong?"

A small voice punctured through his thoughts; he looked down to see the teen watch him with what looked like concern.

"Huh? What? Oh, that coat doesn't fit you, told you. You need a smaller size, kid."

Teito grumbled lightly as he outstretched his arms once again; the sleeves hung over his hands looking as if he borrowed the coat from an older brother.

Frau blinked as he watched the teen tug at the sleeves. He was just joking when he said that the boy needed a smaller size. It was not as if he knew the brat's size, right? He gave a long tired sigh, running a hand through his hair.

"You know what, we'll take it. I'm sure he'll grow into it…eventually." Frau sighed as he handed the payment over to the plump woman. She took it with a smile and turned to accommodate new customers that suddenly appeared at her stand. Frau turned and began walking again; he was now trying not to think about anything.

The bishop stopped suddenly, his eyes turning upward to catch sight of a pink ball of fluff biting away at his hair. Why was the fyulong on his head?

"Dammit, Frau! Did you really have to walk so fast? What's the rush?"

Oh, the kid. He left him behind. _Oops_. A stupid smile crossed the older man's features. Teito immediately glared.

"And don't smile just to get out of it! Stupid perverted bishop." The brunette began walking on his own now, tugging on the collar of the coat over his mouth. He did this for two reasons, one: the cold had been biting at him furiously and second, he wanted to hide the tint of pink on his cheeks. Back at the stand, he was still examining the coat when he realized that the bishop was no where near him. He had asked the woman and, with a smile, she told him that Frau had already taken his leave. Teito's eyed had grown wide with fear as he searched throughout the market. The stupid blond's head was no where to be seen. His breathing had picked up as he began walking through the crowd. It was not that he was terrified of large groups of people, it was that he was not used to so many people without Frau around. Teito never thought that he was so dependent on the stupid perverted priest. And just the relief that filled him when he caught sight of the tall male, it almost made him whimper. But of course he didn't, because that was just stupid. Why would he whimper? And why would he whimper over Frau?

The brunet's blush deepened, only slightly though. Slightly.

"I'll pay you back for this coat," Teito mumbled into the fabric, sure that the blond was within hearing range. "You're the last person I ever want to be indebt to."

A smile played on the bishop's face as he walked along side the teen, his eyes kept on the boy.

"You can pay that back once you grow out of it," blue eyes shifted to look away. "If you ever do, brat."

The teen quickly fumed, raging emerald eyes darted to glare at the bishop. He growled softly, deciding that satisfying the male with a response was not in his good intentions. _Just let it go_, he told himself. Repeatedly.

The blond smiled; this fuming, overreacting teen was the one he had grown attached too and never wanted it any other way.

x-x-x

Teito watched his feet swing back and forth as he sat on the bench. The tiny fyulong beside him growled as he tugged on the brunet's coat. They were bored and had nothing, whatsoever, to do. Teito's growl near matched that of the fyulong but just a tad louder.

"…Stupid Frau. He's such a damn," he scrambled for a word but found none witty and clever in his mental thesaurus, "…lecher!"

The fyulong chirped in. He was irritated with Frau's behavior as well.

Just minutes after Frau did the unselfish act of buying him a coat to keep him warm, he turned around and stalked after a big-breasted blond. And the stupid bishop even had the audacity to tell Teito: _'Buzz off; I have a job to do'_.

Teito growled loudly, pushing himself off the bench and onto his feet. The pink dragon jumped onto Teito's head, nuzzling the teen's chocolate hair.

"We don't need him, Mikage. Let's go look around, since we might be here a while." With a scornful look, the teen walked back to the market place.

It was just as busy as it was a few minutes ago, only this time the more or less late risers were up and about. Teito passed the woman who sold them his coat once more, waving an awkward hand her way. _Weird woman, _he thought turning back to face the rest of the market. Strange and exotic things stared back at him as he continued to walk down the crowded passage. The busting noises of countless arguments and conversations filled the air, along with a mesmerizing smell that would not leave the boy be. Like a bloodhound, he trailed the scent, brushing past people: tall, short, skinny and rather plump.

As he forced his way through an arguing couple, his eyes caught onto a glittering object on display. The smell could wait. He carefully crossed through the crowd of people, reaching the poorly made stand in which an old man occupied. His eyes almost arched into a little 'N'.

"Good Morning, young man. What can I do for you today?"

Teito's green eyes trailed from the old man's face down to his merchandise. An assortment of hand woven bracelets lay scattered before the small brunette, all with a matching color bell at the end. Maybe they were collars? Maybe he could get one for Mikage but the thought of money suddenly popped in his head. His eyes dropped a little. Even the simple act of getting his friend a friendship trinket was near impossible for him, couldn't he just do something right for once?

"…Young man. Here, take this."

Teito's eyes rose slightly to catch sight of a wrinkled hand holding a white collar, at the end a silver bell hung. He immediately shook his head.

"No, no. I can't take this without paying for it. I'm sorry for having wasted your time."

The teen was already turning when a harsh, sickening cough emerged from the older man. Teito turned back to the man. His skin was dark from dirt; bones could be seen sticking out of his paper thin flesh. Teito forced down a gulp.

"Please, do a dying old man a favor. Take it." His voice sounded forced. Teito looked the old man over again: a thin piece of cloth for clothing. The teen looked down at his jacket, he tugged at the collar. '_But Frau…'_ He shook his head; Teito would deal with the bishop later. He shrugged the coat off, extending it out to the senior.

"We'll trade."

The elder gave a soft chuckle, his smile never leaving his face once. His bony fingers curled around the coat.

"Well with that look on your face, how can I say no?"

Teito watched as the old man slowly placed the coat on himself, giving a tiring sigh after the task was complete. They exchanged a smile. The collar appeared before Teito once more, this time he reached over and took it in his hands. His eyes inspected the weaving in the material; there was a zigzag pattern to it though the entire thing was constructed of white thread. Green orbs widen slightly. The bell was light yellow, not silver; he looked up to the vendor.

The brunette took a step back, his heart thumping in his throat. There was nothing there but an empty wall. He turned his head left and right, no one seemed to notice. Everyone continued with their business as if there was never anything there. There was a shop there…wasn't there? Teito shook his head furiously, he was imagining things. His eyes caught on the collar. Or was he? The collar was proof that something was there but…the bell was silver not a while ago, what happened?

The teen gave a long, tired sigh; he bowed his head in defeat. Never, in a million years, would he be able to understand the ever changing world around him. From the government cover-ups, the holy battle between Verloren and the seven Ghosts, the pink dragon that was actually the reincarnation of his dead friend who was half possessed by a Kor (never heard of before by the way!), then the Eye of Mikhail inside him, then…so many other things. So why not have an old man who gives him things then disappears without a trace?

Mikage gave a small _mew_, bringing Teito back to the world. His eyes trailed up to what was left of his best friend, his only friend.

"Look, Mikage, a present."

x-x-x

Teito shivered lightly, cuddling the small bundle of fur against his chest. It was dark and cold and he was almost sure it was snowing outside the town walls. And where was the stupid bishop? Off playing hooky with some skank. That's right! S.K.A.N.K. He picked up a few words at the academy! During all this time the stupid blond had not even bothered looking for him, or at least tell Teito where they were staying. At least then he could have gone there instead of waiting outside like an idiot.

The fyulong gave a small growl as it tugged at Teito's collar.

"It's alright, Mikage. I'm not that cold." The teen looked down to the small animal, ready to give it a small smile when he noticed something was off. An eyebrow rose as he noticed the color of the bell on the fyulong's collar. It looked an aqua color now. He closed his eyes and opened them again. Same color…maybe it was the poor light outside. Ya…the poor light. A bell can't change color at will, can it? Before he could ponder on this thought any longer, a cold wind passed his neck, causing his skin to shiver. Teito near fell off the bench he was sitting on, turning furious to catch sight of dark blue eyes.

"…Frau," the teen spoke sternly. The bishop gave his trademark smile.

Okay, so what if he, Frau, had been gone for almost the entire day to leave the boy to fend for himself? The kid was still alive and in good health. Good health…

A half-covered sneeze came from the smaller male; Teito looked up at him wearily.

"…Brat. Where's the coat I got you?" Frau asked as his eyes narrowed.

"Uhhh…" Teito tried to avoid the bishop's acute glare but found that he could not stray his eyes away. The mouse caught in the snake's gaze. The brunette sighed, cuddling the fyulong deeper into his chest. "I gave it to this old guy, he looked cold and…well I just gave it to him okay? Is that a problem? I already told you I would pay you back for the coat so if you're going to be mad then-"

Teito flinched violently when he felt something fall on his head but realized that this thing was not trying to harm him in any way. His green eyes turned to look at the bishop who began to ruffle his hair lightly then…a little harshly.

"I'm not mad, just pissed. If you're going to give away the things I give you so easily then from this point on your going to earn them!"

Teito slapped his hand away, taking a step back so he would not have to force his neck at such a sharp angle to glare at the other male.

"What? Like putting up with you and your damn lecherous ways isn't enough! Not to mention, I know about those damn porn books you hide in my room from Castor-san!"

"Tch. What books? I don't hide anything-."

"Stop lying, stupid Frau! You're a bishop, your not suppose to lie!"

"Who cares if I lie? I don't even like God!"

"Then why are you a bishop!"

"…Tch. Like I would tell you. Let's go, I'm sleepy." The blond quickly turned and began walking down the dark, deserted street. He gave a long sigh, trying to come up with anymore insults just in case the boy started anything again.

"Oh, like you haven't _slept_ enough!"

A small smile crept on the bishop's features. That…did it.

x-x-x

The two finally reached their destination: a dinky little motel-like structure but they weren't picky about where they slept at this point. As long as it had a bed, it was better than sleeping outside.

Teito collapsed on the small twin bed, a long tired groan escaping him. If he was tired before, he didn't realize it up until now. They had stayed in that small little plaza arguing for a good five minutes, only to have Frau throw the brunet over his shoulder like some rag doll. Why? Because Frau was tired and he wanted sleep. Damn insensitive jerk. The teen buried his head into the soft pillow; time to forget about everything.

Sleep almost came but a thick object crash-landing on Teito's head prevented that sleep. He immediately sat up, noticing a pillow fall beside him. He glared to the person responsible of throwing the object, the person glared right back.

"Don't sleep in your dirty clothes, brat. I am not in the mood for acting like a mother today, especially after getting an ear full from that woman."

Teito looked away from the bishop, trying his best to hold back a laugh.

Just a couple minutes ago, as they walked to their room, they were still bickering when suddenly a door opened and out came a woman with curlers, nightgown and everything. She took one glance at Frau, then another at Teito, who had to force his neck at an odd angle to see why they suddenly stopped. That was where it happened. The woman went off on Frau: that he was not a good influence on a child like Teito, for so many reasons but she only saw one at that point. She lectured him, argued with him and even slapped him once. Poor guy never saw it coming. Teito chuckled lightly only to get a pillow to the head.

"Shut it, brat. Get in the damn bath before I have to force you in there myself. And that is something I do not wish to do. Now if you were that girl I saw earlier-." A pillow, momentarily, quieted down the bishop as Teito sought the chance to run towards the bathroom. Frau took the pillow into his hands, turning to glare at the male, who was still at the mouth of the door. It was so simple to get this kid to do whatever he wanted; it just required a little teasing and such.

"What are you waiting for? You want me to make sure there are no alligators in the tub?" He replied mockingly. It was so simple to play the brat, it should be outlawed or something.

"Smart ass, I have nothing to change into!" Teito folded his arms across his chest; the teen was not going to be made a fool of, not today, not after what he went through because of said bishop.

'_Did he just call me smart ass?'_ Frau thought before walking to his own bag. He growled quietly; he had to pick his battles and at this moment, it was not worth it, especially if the kid new more foul language than what Frau had originally thought.

Black shorts and a white long sleeved shirt were thrown Teito's way. The teen caught them before they had a chance to fall on the ground. He stretched out the shorts.

"These aren't going to fit me!"

"Well then grow, you can't be short forever, yah know."

"Stop being stupid, Frau. And don't call me short just because you're fat."

With two long strides, the spiked blond was next to the brunet, ruffling his hair rather harshly. Teito growled.

"Be goddamn thankful that I even give you anything, brat. Now you either wear that or you sleep in your underwear. Now strip, Imma go wash." He really did sound like a mother.

Teito pushed the male away, quickly locking himself in the bathroom. A few seconds passed and Frau wondered if the brat was actually going to hand over his clothes. Suddenly, the door opened and a mess of clothes began flying out, all landing on the tall bishop. The door slammed closed again. He pulled Teito's clothes from his head, quickly turning heel to walk down to the small wash room down the hall. His eyes landed on the pink fyulong that took its nest on his bed.

"No funny business, puff ball. Stay put and out of my stuff or Imma have to get you a leash for that collar."

The fyulong gave a small squeak in reply, tilting his head as he watched the priest make his way out the door, slamming it behind him. The sound of rushing water filled the small room.

x-x-x

Teito gave a soft sigh as he walked out of the steaming shower, a warm fog slowly trailing behind him. At this point, he had nothing but boxers on, running the white towel through his damp hair. He inspected the room: Frau wasn't there. Oh well, better that the older man wasn't here. Teito slumped to his own bed, falling on the mattress like a large stone. Another long tired sigh escaped him. A thought ran through his mind. He should probably give the fyulong a bath. Mikage had been rolling around in the filth of the street all day. That pink in his fur was slowly turning brown. The teen sat up slowly, eyes observing the small room once more. His bed was next to a large window; to the left of the window was the door. Then there was a large wall, at the end of that wall was the bathroom door, continue left and you reach the corner, another left and you reach Frau's bed, a few steps more and you reach his own. Small room.

His heart raced increased ever so slightly. Teito stood to his feet, only to fall to his knees, eyes scanning underneath the bed.

"…Mikage?" Nothing. His head shot up, he crawled over to Frau's bed, checking underneath it as well. "…Mikage?" Nothing, again. Teito quickly stood up.

"…Mikage? Where are you? Stop playing around." His hand went over his throat; that last word he spoke had an odd high pitched sound to it. He had to calm down. The pink puff was probably with the bishop. Yah, that was it, he was with Frau. Teito forced himself to sit down, taking a long deep breath. The last thing he needed was to jump to random conclusions.

As quickly as he sat down, the male stood back up. The teen made quick pace to the bathroom, easily throwing on the bishop's shirt. He glared down at the piece of cloth; the damn thing fell near mid-thigh. The bishop couldn't be this tall. He grunted; soon he would be tall too, then he could shove everything in Frau's face. Next were the shorts, that oh so easily slipped off his thin hips. The brunette growled even louder, his face taking a shade of red. The bishop was fat; that was all! Oh, who cared if he wore the shorts anyways, the shirt was enough to cover, not to mention he still had his boxers on.

With that, he made his way back into the main room, just to run into a large object. He fell down, hurting his backside in the process. Teito winced slightly, looking up to see none other than Frau. Of course. He shook his head, no time for that now.

"Where's Mikage?" He asked all too quickly. The bishop raised an eyebrow, head turning to his bed where he saw the fyulong last.

"…He was right there, on my bed. Why?" Frau turned to look at the male, only to notice he was not on the floor anymore. He whipped his head around to just catch sight of the small teen run out the door and out into the night.

"Brat!" But Teito either did not hear, or ignored. Frau turned fully to his bed, almost inspecting it for any clues to the fyulong's whereabouts. A glint of light caught his eye, caught between his bed and the small night stand. He reached over to it, pondering the kid's sudden impulse. Frau knew what was going to happen, after all, this was like his, well, _vision_, if you can call it that, that he had not too long ago. He took the material into his hand before sitting on the bed, fist still closed.

_It was him, in a dense forest. Nothing else could be seen but trees. But out of the woodland came the brunet, a placid smile on his face. Then after the boy came the only blond Teito wanted to be around, looking more mist than solid, Mikage. But this teen's smile was not peaceful; it had a sorrow to it. _

Frau opened his eyes, not realizing that he had closed them to begin with. He looked at his fist once more before opening it. A looming dark purple stared back at him from amongst a sea of white. The bell was a dark purple, but was it not a pink color when he last saw the fyulong? He closed his fist. He was not ready for this, not ready at all. No matter how long he was in this world, something like this, he could never be ready for.

**A/N: Dun. Dun. Duuuuuuuun. And so, the drama begins.**


	3. Dreams and Wishes

**Disclaimer – (Insert Here)**

**A/N: And the Plot moves ever so slowly…**

**Chapter Three**

**Dreams and Wishes**

_The young brunet turned, seeing his friend watch something over his own shoulder._

"…_Frau." Teito's voice was soft and was nearly carried off with the unmoving wind. The bishop took a step forward. Instantly, the smaller male raised his hand, telling the other to halt._

"_No, Frau. It's my time to leave you. I've been a burden, I know, but thank you. I'm leaving with Mikage." The male turned to face his friend, who returned his smile but honey-brown eyes were clouded with pain, pain the other couldn't see._

_Without warning, Mikage turned and led Teito deeper into the unknown. Something was not right. A pang of emotion hit the bishop's chest; a god awful bitter taste coated his mouth. _

Frau covered his mouth with his hand, the bitter taste flooding back into his mouth like it had that time he first received this vision. After a low, whispering sigh, Frau dropped his hand; the taste still coated his mouth but the nausea finally began to subside.

"Why now, Puff ball?

_Frau couldn't let it end like this. This was all wrong, everything was off balance. An emotion compelled him forward, an emotion he wished he didn't have. One step turned to two…_

"_Teito!" he shouted but nothing came out as he ran through the black. Small, outward branches tried to stop him, grabbing at his clothes, tearing at his face but the bishop could care less._

"_Teito!" he shouted inaudible words once more._

x-x-x

"Mikage? Mikage!"

Small white clouds formed as the teen exhaled, the cold, bitter winter air stinging his lungs. His eyes searched the wilderness about him, an ache in his chest forcing him to run at a steady pace rather than the hasty one he performed back at the inn.

His heart beat furiously like as his anxiety reached dangerously high levels, his eyes narrowed to only see what was in front of him. The passing trees around him sped up to an abnormal speed even though, some where behind all the rushing thoughts he knew that in his present condition he was not going as fast as he thought.

"Mikage!" he shouted with what little strength he had left only to fall to his knees when silence replied him. His chest tightened; Teito tightly grasped to the fabric over it. He forced air to steadily enter and leave his lungs, doing his best to keep his eyes from watering over. Mikage was not gone, he couldn't be. The pink fyulong could be in the motel this very second; he was probably hiding somewhere. Yeah…hiding. The teen cringed, curling his head towards his chest. So why could he not believe his own lies?

"…Teito."

The teen's head shot up, water he could not suppress rolled down his cheeks. He knew that voice but it had been so long since he heard it he couldn't believe it was true…

"…Mikage?"

The ghostly male smiled lightly at the mention of his name, warm eyes stared down at the mess of a boy before him. He tugged at his military issued jacket, trying to cover up the cold he always felt.

"Teito, why did you come looking for me?" a small _pya_ followed shortly; green eyes trailed down from his long lost friend to a small pink fyulong at his feet. Teito looked back up to the young blond.

"…why? Mi-Mikage, you're my…you're my only friend! I can't lose you! Not again!" Teito cringed at the intensity of his own voice.

"Teito…" The pale male gave a faint sigh, pain clearly written on his face though he tried to hide it with a smile. His hand extended to the boy with life, pulling back his hand when the sight of his transparent hand caught in his honey-brown eyes. He couldn't comfort his friend when the brunet needed it most, what was worse was what he was about to do. Teito caught sight of the male fighting with himself, a sad look on the fyulong as well. His chest constricted; his throat closed. Not again…

"No! Mikage, I know what you're going to do. I know! It's just like last time…like last time. No!" he stood to his feet, tears fighting in his eyes. 'Not again', was all that repeated in his head. His eyes burned, arms pulling an invisible ball to his chest. Mikage was supposed to be his comfort whenever he felt this way. "Y-you can't. W-what am I going to do without you? I'll have no one if you're not here. I lost Father…so does that mean I have to lose you too? Mikage!"

The teen pushed himself to his feet, launching his small body against the slightly taller male. Like a dream, his arms passed through the image, a pained look passed Mikage's features as he watched the brunet fall to his hands, a startled fyulong stared up at him. All Teito could do was stare down at the startled creature, large green eyes slowly beginning to overflow with tears.

"_pya?" _replied the small creature as water droplets stained his fluffed fur. Without any more hesitation, Teito reached down and took the last solid piece of his friend in his arms, crushing the animal in a tight embrace.

"I won't let you leave! I won't allow it! I don't care what your last wish to God was Mikage, my wish is that you'll stay with me forever or I'll follow you onto the next life!"

"Teito, don't be stupid!" The teen looked up, startled. Meeting face to face with the ghost of his friend, Mikage had knelt down to face the other boy. The blond teen huffed air he no longer needed. "Teito…you said that if I left you…you would have no one. That's a lie, Teito." A warm smile spread across his face as his ghostly hands reached out and took the dragon into his arms. Teito watched with a slight pain to his chest as the pink animal was safely cradled in his friend's arms. Why couldn't Mikage touch him?

"Who do I have besides you? I'm nothing more than a war slave. I have no one to care about me." Green eyes trailed down to watch the grass below him sway in the small breeze. He crumpled a wad in his hands.

"Teito, that's not true…from what I remember, you have people at the church who care about you."

"But they're just doing it out of pity! They don't care about me at all."

"…who told you that lie? I've seen the way Frau looks at you…"

Curious, Teito looked up to see his friend softly petting the fyulong, a warm smile still on his face.

x-x-x

_Frau took a deep breath, trying his best to catch it as well as continue his run. The two boys had just suddenly disappeared from his sight but Frau knew that they were somewhere close. He could feel their presence just not see their forms. _

_He was losing Teito. The bishop already knew that Mikage owned the boy's heart but it always comforted Frau somewhat that he, at least, was there for the teen in body. He needed the brat's smile to get through the day. _

_He pushed himself faster, ignoring the burning pain in his lungs. The trees about him decreased in amount, a clearing could be seen up ahead. As Frau's large frame burst through the small lining of trees, his eyes grew wide at the sight. Mikage's ghost hovered slightly over a drop, Teito near ready to take a step towards the male._

_"Teito!"_

_The brunet turned, startled. Upon seeing Frau, his eyes softened._

_"Oh Frau. I'll be fine; Mikage's going to be with me so you don't need to worry-."_

_"That kid has only one place to go, brat! And he's dead! You on the other hand, aren't! You can't go where he's going!" Why would the teen not listen to reason? Why did he so desperately want to go to Mikage's side?_

_"Frau, you don't understand…all I have is Mikage, no one else. If he's not with me…I'm all alone. I'll be all alone Frau. I can't handle that anymore. He has to take responsibility for what he's done to me! I-I was fine alone before I met Mikage. We promised each other we would die together. Mikage!" Teito turned furious to his comrade. "You promised! We swore to each other! Don't you dare let Frau take me away from you! I need-."_

_The teen was cut short as the ghost before him shoved him down, away from the edge. Frau took off sprinting towards the younger male, taking hold of him tightly as he tried to rejoin his friend, forcefully if needed. _

_"You need Frau, Teito Klein. And Frau needs you." The bishop stared wide eyed at the teen that was slowly beginning to disappear. "You both need each other even if neither of you knows it yet. Tribulations will come but you two will stick by each other no matter what. Teito…I love you and I'm doing what's best for you. You already gave part of your heart to Frau, no matter what either of you thinks. Take care of him, bishop; he is my best friend, after all." A tender smile played on Mikage's features. "Teito, my last wish is for my best friend to find someone to love who will love him equally back. Live in my place Teito Klein, you are more than just a war slave…you are the prince of Raggs."_

_Teito didn't try to hold it back anymore as he slowly watched his friend leave him once more. The tears poured down his face as Frau held the young boy tight against him; it was all he could do.  
_

x-x-x

Teito staggered back into the warm motel room, the bishop quickly startled from his musings. They stared at each other for a moment, green meeting blue. Teito, without another word, threw himself on the bed, face turned away from the bishop. Frau forced a lump in his throat down. It was done. The look in Teito's lifeless eyes was all he needed to confirm it. Mikage and his reincarnated fyulong were gone. The bishop twisted the collar in his hands, what was he suppose to do? Offer words of encouragement? Teito would just shrug them off; he has heard them so much already. There was nothing the bishop could do, he felt completely useless. He threw the collar on his bed, finding nothing better to do but take a shower. Maybe the steamy waters would open his mind for a solution. Why could he not be better at dealing with situations as these, especially when they involved people he actually cared about?

The teen heard the door to the bathroom slam, his eyes itching to start pouring again. He curled himself into a tight ball, bringing the pillow to his chest to squeeze the stuffing out. God must love seeing him suffer so much. Taking his best friend twice from him, what did God want with him? If he wanted him broken and giving up on life, well he got his wish. A sob broke its way out, he quickly covered his mouth. No, he would not allow Frau or anyone else to know he had been crying again. He would not shed a tear for another living soul ever again. Never…again.

'_Frau cares about you, Teito. He loves you…'_

Teito shook his head, how could Frau love him when he put the bishop through so much trouble? Another sob broke out, and another. He soon found he could not stop the water from falling from his eyes. Not know, he thought, not when Frau could walk out the bathroom at any moment. '_Frau_…' he twisted around to look upon the bishop's bed. Can the bishop actually care about him? Well, he did do odd little things for the boy that would always make him smile. Like sneaking him meat every once in a while, saying he needed it to grow big and strong. And always giving him an extra helping of milk…to also make him big and strong. The teen chuckled lightly, the damn bishop was always making fun of his height, bastard. Then, there were the days in which Teito wished he would just disappear and the bishop would just pass by and pat his head, an odd comforting feeling though he, Teito, would not admit it. And finally…though Frau probably didn't even know that Teito knew, the bishop would always sneak into the teen's room when he though the boy was asleep and kiss his forehead good night. The brunet's cheeks burned lightly as he ran his hand through his hair, why was he blushing now of all times? Eyes red from crying and his cheeks red from embarrassment. He was too in touch with his feelings, what happened to the academy turning him into a killing machine?

As if his body acted on its own, Teito slipped from his bed, hesitantly crawling into the bishop's bed. He pulled the cover over his head, his entire face red with embarrassment, but being in the bed alone felt like odd yet comforting feeling, like Frau's teasing pats. He cuddled deeper into the white sheets, the faint smell of Frau drifting into the teen's nose as he smelled the bishop's spiced scent on the clothing. He closed his eyes for sleep.

The door to the bathroom squeaked open, a flow of hot steam spilling out after the toned bishop. He wore only pajama bottoms and a sleeveless shirt as he towel-dried his hair, easily catching sight of a sudden lump on his bed. He frowned for only a second, his eyes trailing to the lonely collar at the end of his bed. The kid was too tough to admit he needed someone at the moment, or needed Frau. With a sigh, he threw the wet towel aside, slipping on his trademark gloves before sitting himself at the side of the bed, elbows on his knees as he stared at the floor.

"If you want me to move, I'll move. Tis' just my bed's cold…there's a draft coming from the window."

"…a draft?" the bishop asked, the damn window was closed and sealed tight. This district was famous for its nasty winters.

"Yah, a draft, you know what a draft is right?"

The bishop chuckled lightly, even though the teens voice broke every now and again, he was still being a smartalic. His blue hues trailed slightly to watch the lump on his bed rise and fall evenly. _Looks like the kid calmed down a bit_.

The teen felt slightly anxious when the bishop did not respond. Maybe it was a bad idea for him to have invited himself into the bishop's bed after all.

"Um…I-I'll just go to my bed then." Before the young teen could remove the covers, an arm crashed down around his abdomen, holding him in place. He forced himself to turn around; catching sight of the blond looking down at him from the comfort of his pillow, a small smile could be seen. Teito could feel his cheeks grow slightly warm.

"You'll get cold if you sleep next to me, kid. Ever thought of that?"

Green hues quickly looked away, his embarrassment tripling. Before he could back out of it, Teito shoved himself against the male causing Frau to turn onto his side, holding the frail teen in his arms. Through the blanket, Teito firmly grasped what he could of the other male's shirt.

"…I can deal with it if it's you."

The bishop held the teen just slightly tighter.

"Damn brat, so spoiled."

"And whose fault is that!" Teito quickly retaliated. Like old times.

"Hey, I buy you stuff cause you keep giving it away to old people!"

"They need it!"

"Pfft. Whatever."

"Don't 'whatever' me like some child, Frau!"

"I can do whatever I damn well please, I'm a bishop."

"It's you being a bishop that's stu-_hahahahaha!_" before the brunet could finish his sentence, a burst of laughter exploded from him. Through the blankets, Frau had somehow managed to find the teen's sides, tickling him in hopes to shut him up.

"What was that? I can't hear you!" Frau asked sarcastically as he continued tormenting the teen through laughter. In desperation, the teen took hold of the bishop's wrists, unable to do anything as his strength depleted with each laugh that escaped him. Tears formed in Teito's eyes as he tried to twist this way and that.

"I-I c-can't breathe! F-Frau, stop, stop _haha!_"

The bishop grinned wildly. After a moment, he finally released the brunet, falling beside him on the bed, and somehow feeling tired as much as the teen must have felt. Teito, after finally catching his breath, gave a small growl even though a smile could be clearly seen on his face.

"That was a dirty trick," he playfully punched the bishop's shoulder.

"Yeah…" Frau placed a hand on his chest, almost feeling a heartbeat that was not there. "But it got a smile on your face." The bishop turned slightly to catch the teen from the corner of his eye, waiting to see the teen's reaction.

Teito stayed silent for a moment, watching the dark blue hues that wathed at him. He felt almost calm when the bishop was around and his little antics had made Teito almost forget about everything that bothered him. Emerald eyes trailed down from the bishop, feeling almost a sting to his chest as his thoughts began to run away with him. What if Frau ended up leaving him as well? That was something he knew he could not survive. Frau was all he had left and somehow he had grown so dependent on the big oaf. Frau always knew what to say when the brunet needed to hear it, or what to do when he did not want to hear anything at all. Frau seemed to always be there. Was it God's will to rip away everything he cared about?

"Kid…" the bishop spoke suddenly, interrupting the silence, "You should get some sleep, we move again tomorrow." He took the small body and cradled him gently in his arms, avoiding the teen's eyes. This was unlike himself, Frau thought. He never held anyone like this, like if they might slip from his grasp if he let them go for a second. This boy, this boy was doing something to him, and Frau was not sure if it was a good thing or bad.

The teen blushed at the bishop's sudden motion, feeling utterly confused yet, dare he think it, comfortable. But he could not let Frau know that.

"Frau…I can't breathe."

"Not my problem."

"Frau-."

"Not my problem."

"Frau-!"

The blond began to snore loudly, obviously faking it. The teen pushed against the larger male, taking large breaths as much as he could.

"Stop squirming or I'll squeeze tighter."

The brunet stopped, a loud sigh escaping him. Frau really was a child at heart; maybe that was why the teen felt so comfortable around him. No, that was not right. '_He loves you, Teito.'_ But what kind of love?

"Frau…"

"What now?"

"You weren't asleep, you bastard! And after you were snoring so loudly in my ear!"

"Blah, blah, I can't hear you. I'm talking in my sleep."

"What kind of stupidity is that?"

"Don't make me drug you, _sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep_." Somehow, the bishop knew they would not get much sleep that night.

**A/N: Not like that, you dirty birds! Dx This is rated T for Teen! Not M for Mature. Go look for your smut elsewhere~~ Okay, so I'm thinking some of you might be mad about Mikage being…**_**removed**_**. But it had to be done! With him around, Teito would never have bothered to love someone else D: He's just that kind of kid…Yeah. –nods–**


	4. Burden

**Disclaimer – (Insert Here)**

**A/N: To warn: the plot is going to take a trip on the fast lane. I know, sucks, but I like random plot twists, keeps the reader on their feet ;]**

**Chapter Four**

**Burden**

A prism of sparkling light filtered through the stained window at the inn. The curtains did nothing to hold back the light as the morning sun woke the world, moving higher into the sky. Stray rays crawled toward Bishop Frau, forcing sleep away as the dawn light irritated his eyes. A grunt escaped him as his arm tried to cover the unwanted illumination. The feeling of warmth, warmth he was not accustomed to so early in the morning, startled him fully awake. Blue hues trailed down to see a frail body pushed against his own, curled up beside him like a cat would do in search of warmth. Slowly, Frau eased back into the pillow, running his gloved hand through dirty brown hair.

The teen twitched slightly at the sudden touch before sighing and snuggling deeper into the object before him. A spicy scent filled his nose; it somehow made him feel at ease in his half-awake state. The morning air nipped lightly at his exposed skin, his neck and ears feeling the cold more without the protection of a blanket. Unconsciously, he tugged at the fabric, wanting nothing than more sleep.

"Hey kid."

Teito grunted at the sudden interference to his quiet morning rest.

"Don't 'urgh' me. I'm talkin' to you, brat."

Frau let out a sigh as the boy refused to respond. It was not that the kid was bothering him, not at all; it was that Frau was a tad bit too comfortable in this situation. He should not be comfortable snuggling with Teito. Now if Teito were a girl, then maybe they could _begin_ to discuss the situation.

"Teito," he spoke in a stern tone but the teen was not shaken up. Instead, a soft yawn escaped the brunet, slowly falling deeper into sleep.

Giving up, the bishop turned his sights to the ceiling above, placing his hand softly on the boy's back. Something was not right with the bishop. No matter what troubles they faced together, Frau should not feel this attached to one person. Yet day in and day out, Frau risked his very own…'life' to keep this boy safe. It was his top priority, even though it would not seem so at times. He had been woman-less for two full weeks now, it was why he left the boy alone for a few hours; god forbid the kid could not take care of himself for a short period of time but every time he ran after one, they always turned out to be Kor. Why do the pretty ones always turn out that way? He could grant them their wishes, and by wishes he meant-

"Frau…?"

Startled, the bishop looked down to the brunet to catch sight of two sleepy emerald eyes looking up at him. Confusion quickly over took Frau as the two males continued to stare at each other, the teen clearly not all there.

"Y-yeah?" Frau responded after some time, somehow feeling guilty of something he was not sure of.

"…Good morning."

Those two words were all that took to send Frau over the edge, not that he even knew he was on the edge to begin with. Without hesitation, he reached down and took the small boy into his arms, hugging him tightly for reasons he was not sure of.

Teito slowly came to his senses, the bishop's sudden actions causing him to wake. He stared forward helplessly, wondering what could have possibly gotten into the older male when his thoughts trailed to last night. Was Frau comforting him? That had to be it; Frau would not hug another male just for the hell of it. Teito slipped his chin down from the strained position on the other's shoulder to letting his head rest on it. His eyes found themselves closing, arms wrapping around the large frame of the blond, unsure of how long the bishop was going to keep him in this position.

"…Frau," Teito spoke after some time of complete silence. "I-I'm okay now, I'm not going to fall apart because of Mikage." '_At the moment'_, thought the teen. He sighed, continuing when the bishop did not reply. "I'll get over it. You don't have to worry about me; I'm old enough to take care of myself… I don't want you to bother yourself over me…Frau?"

The teen suddenly found himself being shoved onto the mattress, watching through confused eyes as Frau stalked towards the bathroom, slamming the door with such brutal intensity that caused the door to shake furiously on its hinges. Did he say something to upset the bishop? He dared not ask that question, he had never seen Frau like that. Frau was always cheerful, childish…even perverted and all those other bad qualities but never…angry.

Frau pushed himself harshly against the door, sliding down until he sat on the cold tile floor. With his elbows on his knees, he rested his head on his propped arms. There was defiantly something wrong with him. Something wrong with Frau. Just then, back there, he…he could have sworn… Frau threw a punch to the wall adjacent; the whole structure shook in protest. This was unlike him, Frau was a womanizer. They could almost be called his weakness so why…? Why did he want to…_kiss_ the stupid brat? He banged his head back against the door, trying to clear that thought from his head. It was all because of the setting, had it been a woman, Frau would not have hesitated. He had never slept in the same bed with another male before so it had to be that. He confused Teito with a girl. And not to mention his late nights hunting had added to his brain mush. That had to be it, stress. Stress was making him think things like that. There were no romantic feelings for the boy. That would not be right.

After convincing himself that stress had lead to his sudden thoughts, Frau exited the bathroom, a loud sigh escaping him.

As the door swung open, he was received with silence. Frau half expected the teen to be furious so when nothing attacked him, confusion seeped in again. He fully walked out the door, taking his time to survey the area. Nothing. The kid wasn't there. Where could he have run off to?

With long strides, the bishop made his way out of the room, heading straight for the laundry room. As he suspected once he got there, the clothes he left to dry were missing. Teito's clothes. His eyes trailed down to the ground, reaching down to pick up the white garment left on the floor. It was his shirt, the brat took off. Teito must have taken his little fit in the bathroom the wrong way.

With a growl heavy in his throat, the bishop ran back to the room, quickly shoving all his belongings into his small black bag. He was all ready and packed, minus the fact that he couldn't find his left boot. With a hurried feeling, he ransacked the room, throwing aside the comforter to his bed just to hear the clear sound of a falling bell. He froze, turning his head to the side of the bed to find the white collar on the floor. Hesitant, he reached down and picked up the material, taking his sweet time to look over the trinket. And before his eyes the bell slowly began to swirl in color, finally stopping to take a shade of black. An ominous color. Quickly, he shoved it into his pocket. As his eyes followed the bed's frame, he found his other boot shoved nicely between the wall and the bed post. Without wanting to waste any more time, he placed his shoe on, took his bag and out the door he went.

Frau soon found himself racing through the town in his hawkzile. Illegal, yes; fast, hell yes. He zoomed past unsuspecting crowds, all of which ran out of the way of the roaring vehicle. Blue hues darted left and right, finding no sigh of the small teen. Frau clenched his teeth, fear slowly running through his blood. The brat probably thought that he was mad at him, that was why he ran so quickly into the bathroom. The kid always assumed the stupidest things. You know when you assume you make an a-!

The bishop halted his vehicle; it screeched in disapproval but halted just in front of the town exit. There he caught sight of something he never thought would happen. Never in a million years, he told himself but there was the scene, clear as the summer sky that was shining above the priest. Frau abandoned his vehicle and took off running, stopping just feet away as two heads turned to see who was approaching.

"W-what are you doing here?"

Unsightly violet eyes caught onto blue, a smirk crawling along the usually placid face of Ayanami, the Military dog.

"Well if it isn't the bishop, how nice of you to see your little friend off."

Wide eyed, Frau turned to Teito who stood across from the man, sight directed down to the floor, purposely away from the bishop.

"Teito…what the hell do you think you're doing?"

"I'm leaving!" the teen shouted, clenching the object in his hands tightly. His small frame shook as he tried his best to hold back all the emotion that scorched him. The bishop stared forward in disbelief.

"…leaving?"

"He's coming back to the academy. Come on Teito Klein, time to go." Ayanami took his leave, heading towards his waiting vehicle.

Teito stole a glance to the bishop but found he could not look away anymore. The teen could feel something constrict in his chest, making it difficult for him to breathe, he forced shallow gasps. Quickly though, he shook the feeling off before it could resurface. With all the force he could muster, Teito threw the object in the bishop's direction, Frau easily catching it but refusing to stray his sights from the teen.

"There! Now I can't bother you anymore, Frau! You're free, I wont-." A sob caught in the teen's throat; he forced it down. "I won't…worry you anymore." With a turn of the heel, Teito ran after Ayanami into the awaiting plane which took off without a second notice once the boy was inside.

Before the bishop realized, he was sucking in air he no longer needed, eyes trailing down to the object in his hands. Collar. The blood collar that once kept the two together and now it was off. Teito called Ayanami just for this sole purpose? Because he thought the bishop did not want him around?

Frau growled loudly, the sound rumbling like thunder in his chest.

'_The brat is so…stupid!_' He mentally shouted, turning quickly towards his own vehicle. He threw the useless collar aside, the cold metal slowly melting into the snow about the outskirts of the town. The collar was unimportant. Everything around him was unimportant. What truly was important, here and now, was that the brat needed to be with him, he did not care what sort of 'feelings' he had for the boy, Frau needed him. That boy…kept him alive.

This aching he thought long gone reappeared as he sped in the direction the plane was traveling. He would bring Teito back, even if that meant by force.

**A/N: How did Ayanami know to meet Teito there? AYANAMI KNOWS ALL! He's freakin' crazy like that :D**


	5. Kidnapped

**Disclaimer – (Insert Here...)**

**A/N: I'm getting tired of writing that. For future reference, I don't own, so I can stop writing that now :) If you find mistakes, I apologize. I suck at catching my own mistakes ( - w - ); **_**MISSION IMPOSSIBLE**_** CHAPTER! Yosh~! Damn, I should have titled it that. **_**Shxt.**_

**Chapter Five**

**Kidnapped**

Everyone, sooner or later, has the wish of repeating some event in their lives. Whether it is to relive the moment, or change some aspect of it. Usually, it is to change some aspect of it, believing that their futures will change if that certain event followed a different course or if it never existed. Frau, currently, wished for that repetition of events. If he could relive one moment, one of those "events", with no questionable doubt, he would ask to relive that faithful night in which he drove like a psychotic lunatic along a cliff's face. Better yet, even before that event, if he had never annoyed Castor and left when the puppeteer wanted to, their time to the Seventh District would have been quicker and they would have bypassed the falling teen none-the-wiser. Though, maybe, Lab might have seen something in a vision. His visions were sometimes unclear, so fifty-fifty.

Frau growled, who was he fooling? The brat was an important part of his life, and he would not dare to change it for the world.

Now all that was left was finding the brunet. Finding him, kicking his ass and bringing him home. One thing was certain, he knew the boy's…general location. The difficult part was infiltrating the area without being seen. He was still some miles away from the stupid military school yet security could be seen along the road. Somehow, Frau managed to get around them. He was Frau after all.

A mile or so from the academy, Frau pushed his vehicle into the brush, hiding it from eyes high above in watch towers and in the sky. Until the cloak of darkness descended on the district, Frau had to play the waiting game. Kidnapping in broad daylight was definitely an issue. The only problem was…Frau had no idea where to start.

The academy building was larger than what he had anticipated. He growled lightly, maybe his plan wasn't the greatest. Then again, he had no plan to begin with so what more could he expect but for everything to go wrong? The looming issue was he could not return to the Barsburg Church empty handed. Castor would kill him. And maybe even Lab would join in on the fun. No, they would do much worse than death, seeing as he was already on that path. They would…_make him wash old people_!

Frau turned his sights away from the building as the mental picture played over in his mind. He gagged slightly. He would rather die than wash old people! Frau sighed. He needed a new cliché phrase rather than that one. It wasn't funny anymore.

The bishop turned back to the military academy. Frau could handle his two friends if he really wanted to; they were not the reason he was here now, trying to break into a military base. After all…Teito was his shining ray of light. Frau slapped his forehead; that had to be the cheesiest thing he had ever thought up. He looked forward again.

The place was too big for him to search. _Even_ in his ghastly form. Where on earth would they put Teito? He escaped from their prison so the spiked blond doubted they would try it twice. And the teen seemed to like jumping out of high places so the rooms near the top should be out. Did they have a lower floor? That seemed like the best possibility to the bishop. So as the sun began to set, he set off towards the building.

Habit had him huffing for breath as he ran through the maze of trees, taking cover when the sounds of voices drew near to him. This…'sneaking around' was defiantly not in his job description.

He managed to sneak into the school's grounds undetected, taking notice that the few stray students still about made their way to one specific building. Could Teito be kept there? Seemed that a military school would have one specific building set aside for dorms. He took a gamble; if he was wrong…well, learn by trial and error.

Frau straightened himself out, brushing stray leaves from his hair as he, ever so casually, strolled along side a few of the kids walking into the building. They passed glances towards the tall male; he returned their looks of confusion with a smile.

Frau had given up on Plan A, it was too much work and he was still pissed off at the stupid brat. (And he was not planning on using the word stupid when he finally saw Teito.) It was time to unravel his cunning and unique plan: Plan B.

"Hey. You guys know a kid by the name of Teito Klein?"

"You mean the slave?" one replied, his friend beside him quickly rammed his elbow into the other's abdomen to shut him up. "I mean, who are you?"

"I'm visiting him. He's my kid."

They passed each other a look and directed their attention back at Frau. He cleared his throat, slightly annoyed at their staring. Once he found himself inside, and the kids still had avoided answering his question, Frau wondered if guards patrolled the building.

"Well…he's somewhere on the bottom floor, right?" one of the kids pointed down, turning to his friend who shrugged his shoulders. "He's somewhere down there. Has a whole floor to himself, damn spoiled-." The kid received another elbow to the gut as his friend tugged him around the bishop, quickly escaping to their own rooms.

Frau watched them scurry off; the hallway soon seemed too empty. With a simple shrug of his shoulders, the blond proceeded forward towards a set of stairs he caught sight of at the end of the hallway.

x-x-x

Teito, books spread about him on the bed, was busy reading up on the lessons he had missed during his "vacation" time at the Church. Two year had passed since then, though it felt as if time stood still at the Seventh District. He still had the appearance of a preteen though he was sixteen now.

Thoughts began to trail away from the script on the pages before him and back to the time when he was running away from the very place had returned to so willingly. It was fate, Frau had said, that they met, not coincidence. Teito began to wonder if that was true. If it was, why did it seem that the teen wanted to do nothing more than run away from the blond?

'…_Frau…is he doing okay?_' he wondered.

A sudden knock to his door startled him; he never had visitors. Not even Aya-san [1] who brought him all the way here. It almost seemed like that man wanted nothing to do with Teito, not even Miroku-sama. Teito always hoped things would go back to normal once he arrived at the academy but it just seemed he was ostracized even more. He began to regret his decision but Frau needed to be set free from him. But the truth of it was: Teito was afraid of getting too close.

His hand turned the door knob slowly, pulling the wooden door open wide enough so he could see who lay at the other end. Familiar blue eyes stared down at him with murderous intent. Quickly, he pushed the door to try and lock it, his heart racing.

"You told me…Teito Klein… 'DONT WORRY'!" Frau pushed against the door, slightly wondering how the little brat could keep the door pushed against him. "Who in their rightful mind tells someone not to worry when they run off with _AYANAMI_? The man tries to kill you and you run off with him?" Frau somehow managed to wedge his foot between the door and its frame, completely killing off Teito's plan to close the door on him. "For three weeks! Three miserable weeks I followed that stupid plane! And for what? To find out that I somehow managed to find myself in the First District! Can you tell me how stupid one's got to be to follow the wrong fucken plane? Don't answer that! Just open the door, you damn, _fucking_ _brat_!"

Even though Teito knew he could not close the door on Frau now, he still would not allow the bishop to enter his room. From the sounds of his voice, Frau was beyond mad. Maybe on the borderline of vengeful rage.

"Why are you here?" Teito called out as he pushed his weight into keeping the door closed.

"Do you seriously have to fucking ask? I'm here because I want to enroll-!"

"Enrollment is in the building across from here, you should go th-."

"Shut the hell up!" Frau banged harshly on the door. Silence slowly crawled into the empty floor. The hallway was deserted, showing no signs of any life, minus the boy and a few insects. There truly was no one on this floor, Frau counted that as a good thing. He could get away with murder and not have to deal with witnesses.

Frau hushed his unnecessary breathing, hearing the uneven heaving of the boy on the other side of the slab of wood. The teen's heart was beating so loud that even Frau could hear its rhythmic pattern. The bishop forced himself to calm down, wondering if anyone on the top floor might have heard him. With a sigh, his forehead fell on the door, his fist banging lightly on the wooden slab.

"…kid. Please, please open up." Frau forced himself to speak evenly, his voice sounding almost hoarse.

Another moment of silence lingered as the boy began to weigh the risks. Though he almost knew Frau would never hurt him…_badly_, it was still a fearful thought to think about.

"…I'm not leaving without you. Even if that means I have to wait outside this room for days on end."

Teito quickly pulled the door open, staring at the bishop in disbelief. His eyes darted up and down the hallway before tugging the taller man inside. He promptly closed the door behind the blond, turning the lock into place.

Frau took this moment to look about; the room was as tiny as they come. All that could fit was a twin bed, and even then, the bed looked small. A pile of clothes were thrown in one corner, and from what Frau could see, the one door in this room led to a smaller bathroom. His eyes trailed up to the ceiling, his head almost touched it. He was definitely out of place in this small little room; he almost felt like a giant.

"Frau, why are you here?"

"…stick by each other, no matter what." The bishop refused to turn around, not trusting what kind of facial expression he had on. "I swore…to myself that I would keep that promise. That I wouldn't let go of your hand." The blond turned around to look at the small male. "And I never go back on my word. What I want to know is: why are you here?"

The priest sat himself at the edge of Teito's bed, sapphire eyes staring at the brunet intently. Teito couldn't match the bishop's stare, forcing himself to look away.

"I didn't want to worry-."

"We gonna start that again?"

Teito began to rub his shoulder, wanting his hands occupied so his jumpy nerves could find an outlet for their nervousness. The bishop's stare was too intense and at the moment, Teito was feeling very self-conscious.

"I don't need to explain myself if you're not going to." His sights turned to the bishop, a challenging tone to his voice. If the blond was going to refuse to explain his sudden appearance, then Teito could refuse to answer Frau's question as well.

An elongated sigh escaped the bishop as he dropped his head, his hand ruffling his tousled blond hair. With both his hands draped over his legs, Frau turned his attention back to the brunet, who continued to watch him with false bravery.

"…explain myself?" Frau answered after some time.

"Yes. Why did you run into the bathroom like you did back when we were traveling?"

"Back then? Three weeks ago?" Frau wondered how many nights the brat had kept himself awake pondering that single thought.

The teen nodded, unable to trust his voice.

"Kid…" Frau grunted, unsure of how to continue the conversation. His sights turned away. "…that…is something I'm not even sure of myself."

"Liar!"

Frau's head shot up; startled at the intensity in the young male's voice. Teito was visibly shaking now, trying his best to suppress all the anger inside of him. The two stared each other down, one with more intensity than the other.

"Liar… you…you know why you did that. So why won't you want to tell me? This is the exact reason I wanted to get away from you. You…Frau…" Teito looked away, almost cursing himself for allowing the conversation (if it could be called that) to turn back to him. He did not want to be the first to explain his actions. He wanted, what he wanted the most, was to hear the bishop say something completely out of character. But, Teito doubted he would ever get that wish. "Get out."

"…kid?"

"I said get out. I don't need to return back to a place where I'm not even wanted so why don't you just get out of here-."

"I came all this way_-!_" Frau pushed himself to his feet, taking a step forward to close the small gap between them. Angrily, he stared down the smaller male from high above, Teito obviously not accustomed to his sudden outbursts. But then again, Frau hardly had any; in fact, only this kid made him like that. "…to get you. I am not about to return empty handed. Even if I have to kidnap you, you are returning to the Barsburg Church with me."

"But why-?"

Frau quickly cut the teen off, placing his hand over the brunet's mouth. Teito quickly squirmed under the bishop's hold, wanting nothing more than to tell the jerk off but, of course, Frau was stronger.

The larger male flattened himself against the wall adjacent to the door, forcing his breathing to a slow, unearthly rate. Slowly, the sound of footsteps began to make themselves known, Teito could hear them now as well. His squirming ceased as he pushed himself against Frau, suddenly realizing what kind of situation they put themselves in. Frau should not be here. Teito should be down here alone, and with all the yelling, he was sure someone ratted him out. After all, no one liked the teacher's pet.

A knock finally came to the door. Both males froze, ceasing all breathing, their sights strictly on the door knob.

"Teito Klein, open the door." After a moment of silence, the voice repeated itself. "Teito Klein, open the door or we'll be forced to enter."

"_We'll_" was the thought that passed through both males. There was more than one person behind the door, and with more than one person, more people knew about the intruder. Frau held the teen slightly closer.

After a moment's hesitation, Frau leaped forward and kicked the door opposite of its hinges, sending the piece of wood rattling off its support and onto the guards. Quickly, the bishop took hold of the teen's hand, pulling him out of the room and down the hallway. He stole a glance back, noticing two men under the door. They knew about Frau, they just had to.

"Frau!"

Startled, the priest turned to the boy.

"You'll get no where with me tagging along. Just ditch me and get out of here!"

Growling, Frau turned his sights back forward. The kid had the audacity…

"What did I tell you? I'm not leaving without you!"

Frau pushed himself faster, tugging the teen forcefully behind him. As they ascended the stairs, the sounds of murmuring voices hit the bishop. With a growl, Frau swept his free hand aside as soon as he cleared the last step that was on the first floor.

All Teito could see was a sudden explosion, smoke and debris scattering about as he was pulled out into the cold, stinging air. Did Frau do that? His sights turned back to Frau. This scene seemed all too familiar to the boy. He cringed and hoped that it wouldn't end like it had for his friend Mikage…

The bishop was startled slightly as he felt the small hand in his clench tightly. The feeling of _not_ dragging extra weight hit him suddenly, his sights turning to catch the kid running along side of him. A weight lifted off the bishop's cold chest as the two ran side by side through the brush, the younger male breathing in the cold air. There was no sound of pedestrian pursuit as Frau pulled out his hidden vehicle, turning sights to the shivering teen. Without hesitating, he pulled the coat off his shoulders and threw it onto the smaller male, quickly sitting himself on the hawkzile.

Teito looked down, baffled, at the coat in his hands, sights turning towards the bishop. He watched as Frau extended a hand towards him.

"Come on, kid!"

Teito took hold of Frau's hand, sitting himself behind the larger male as he wrapped the coat around him. His sights turned back to the academy as the sound of roaring engines filled his ears.

"Frau!"

"I know," was all the blond said before roaring his vehicle to life. He sped through the thick brush, nearly avoiding the incoming trees speeding towards him, not noticing the small arms that wrap tightly around him.

**Footnotes:**

**[1] Aya-san: Teito's nickname for Ayanami. It's a way of familiarizing with the man he so easily went away with instead of staying with Frau, who he knew longer and who hadn't tried to kill him before :) Just thought I should explain, yah know?**

**A/N: My hawkzile's are hovering vehicles! I got a few complaints about that... Truth be told, I don't know if they're mechanical or birds. Either way, Aw! Frau to the rescue! :D**


	6. Secrets and Promises

**A/N: New Chapter! Yay :D And…the awesome-est character of characters is debuting ;3 Let's give a round of applause for MIKHAIL! –fangirl scream– **

**Chapter Six**

**Secrets and Promises**

"_Bishop…Bishop!"_

Frau stirred slightly, wanting to shut out this annoying voice and get the sleep he so desperately needed.

"_Wake up, you ignorant oaf!"_

The priest was startled awake as a blunt object impacted him square on the chest. He sat up coughing, wincing as he took a moment to compose himself. His sights turned to the brat whose once green eyes took a dark, menacing red color.

"…it's you, Mikhail. I don't like you."

"_Likewise, bishop, but all that later, can we please remove ourselves from this spot, I fear we might be seen."_

Frau took his time to look around, noticing there was no sign of road. Both he and the possessed teen lay in a clearing, Frau's vehicle thrown off to the side. It had obviously seen its last ride.

"What-."

"_I thought you might say that, bishop. After you kidnapped my master from that horrid estate, a mass of those…soldiers chased after us. Like the buffoon you are, you sped down this sorry excuse for a road. Obviously, your vehicle could not handle the rough terrain but did the idiot slow down? No of course not. The idiot continued in an idiotic speed-."_

"Okay! I get it. I am an idiot. I get that enough from the brat, I don't need it from you." Frau growled, blue hues darting to glare at the teen.

"_Either way, you were driven by your instincts, and failed to see a turn ahead." _The brunette turned to point in the path the hawkzile had parted through the trees. _"My master called out to me for help. I'm afraid that all I was able to do was keep my master's body and you, bishop, safe in my __current__ state, though you were knocked unconscious, not that any brain cells were damaged. You hardly have any to begin with."_

Frau ignored the rude comment thrown at him; something did not fit with what the stupid piece of stone said. "Weren't you complaining that that stupid blood collar limited your power? Now that it's off, shouldn't you be able to do more destructive power like…" the sound of approaching engines filled the quiet night. "Get rid of some military lackeys?"

"_That might be the case, bishop. But my master wishes not to discuss this with the likes of you. Now, can we please go?"_

"Oh." Frau stood to his feet, stretching his sore muscles, obviously not worrying too much about the approaching enemy. He grabbed the red eyed teen and, so casually, threw him over his shoulder as he began a sprint into the darkened scenery of woodland.

"_Stupid baboon! Put me down this instant!"_

"Stop your yapping or we'll be spotted. Besides," Frau huffed, suddenly feeling all too weary. "Your _master's_ injured."

The possessed teen pouted, knowing full well the verbal battle was lost. Teito had, in fact, received injury prior to the crash. At the time, Mikhail was still in sleeping form and could not do anything for his little master.

"_Bishop…I don't like you."_

"Like wise," Frau quickly responded as he slid down a muddy slope to hide in the cover of shrubs, placing the teen beside him on the muddy ground. As the sounds of pursuit passed by them, the bishop gave a loud sigh. Looks like the military did not train all too well in the matters of tracking.

"_But…my master seems to be very fond of you."_

Startled, the bishop turned to the body beside him, surprised to see that the archangel was blushing.

"Cuuuute." Frau could not help but state, a smile creeping along his face.

"_Don't take it the wrong way, idiot. It's not me who's making my face take on this color." _Mikhail quickly rebutted. _"Now don't tell me you plan on letting my master sleep in this filth. He's tired."_

The smile quickly faded from Frau's face as he took the time to glare at the other. He took hold of the teen's arm, pulling him down the rest of the slope. Instead of throwing the small body over his shoulder, Frau swept the boy up in his arms like a newly wed bride. His sights turned to the mountain just miles from their current location.

"…maybe we can take shelter in those mountains over there."

"…" The teen turned in the direction the bishop was looking towards, his face still heated. _"…how cliché. Two alone in a cave during a cold winter's night, has fate run out of clever tactics to bond two together?" _[**A/N: Lawl**]

"No one asked you, it's either that or we sleep in a tree. And why the hell are you talking about fate?"

As Frau began to ascend towards the small mountain his footing slipped along the muddy ground, threatening to slide him back to his starting position. Luckily, he composed himself before that happened. Frau wondered if it had rained during his little trip to the first district. It seemed the only reasonable explanation for everything to be drenched in water.

While he forced his way through shrubbery, the sight of the mountain seemed to run away from them, never getting any closer.

"_Bishop…"_

"What?" Frau grunted as he continued to stagger forward. How did he get himself into this mess?

"…_what is my master to you?"_

"That's some question you got there."

"_Answer it, before I make your empty head explode."_

"How bout we compromise," Frau chuckled.

"…_I'm listening."_

"What happened to Teito during that three week period?"

The brunette bit down on his lip. _"Master wishes that you not know…"_

"Is your master awake now?"

Red eyes turned to look up at the bishop, whose sights were straight ahead. Frau looked so angry yet concerned at the same time; the possessing angel wanted this man to know. He wanted someone that would care for his young master after he was long gone.

"_Bishop, your idiotic words have moved me."_

Frau's eye twitched, when did he say any idiotic words?

"_I will tell you, only on the pretense that you keep your promise."_

"…promise?" Blue hues looked down to the boy.

"_You know well of what I speak of, bishop. Now, what happened to my master is the reason my powers are depleted to your own level. Ghastly, I know." _The teen sighed, watching as Frau looked forward again. _"As soon as he arrived, we were attacked by that man, the man with the darkness no others can match. Not even you, Zehel. He forcefully tried to pry me from my master but we put up one heck of a fight. For a week, my master was starved to force weakness on his body. That was when the man tried again. He succeeded; however, I was able to keep a sliver of the stone inside my master. Without a complete stone, it is practically useless. I can only use this limited power because my spirit remained in young Teito's body. The man by the name of Ayanami, soon found out the stone would not work; he however does not know what is required. At the moment, they believe they need a medium. Let them continue to think that."_

"…and the kid didn't want me to know that?" Honestly, Frau did not care about that. Sure, the fact that Teito was tortured by that military bastard was infuriating in and of itself but he did not care why the asshole did it. What the bishop wanted to know most was: "That bastard tries to kill Teito when they first met and the brat runs off with him as soon as he gets the chance? Does he not remember what that bastard did to his best friend, to Teito himself? Well, you seem to know everything about him, Mikhail, so tell me what the fuck was that about!" the bishop didn't care who heard him at this point, fury controlled him and there was no way of holding it back now. He knew the boy could be dense when his emotions overpowered him but not to this extent.

"_Bishop." _The possessed teen spoke sternly but quickly his voice softened as if speaking to an impatient child. _"That blood collar bonded you two together. That blood collar made it impossible for the two of you to separate if you wished young Teito's life, and those he might be around, to remain in this world. Who do you know that could possibly have the knowledge of removing the collar?"_

They walked in total silence after the angel's question to the bishop, who refused to answer it. Mikhail knew that Frau knew who exactly could remove that collar, but the bishop would not understand unless he said the words out loud.

Frau, after some time, gave a sigh in defeat. "Ayanami."

"_So the priest isn't dense after all."_

"But why?" Frau's question still remained unanswered. "Did the brat hate me that much that-."

"_It appears I was wrong, the bishop is dense."_

Frau cringed at the monotone voice coming from the brat's mouth. He wanted Teito yelling at him, not this possessing monotone voiced angel.

"_Bishop," _Mikhail sighed, _"the boy did this idiotic act…because of you. And he thinks _you_ dislike _him_."_

"What?" Frau practically yelled, stopping in his tracks to see if the angel was just playing him for a fool but the teen's face looked serious enough. The blond sighed, composing himself as he continued forward. "Why does he think that?"

"…_do you need to ask? The boy says good morning to you and you hide in the bathroom for a good three hours." _The angel hissed.

"…three hours?" it had only seemed like a few minutes to Frau.

"_I tried to reason with him, but Teito shut me out. Last thing I remember was feeling this surge of power when the blood collar was taken off only to have Ayanami quickly put me to sleep again. He definitely is some sort of old evil magic…I just can't quite-."_

"I don't care about that." the blond interrupted, eyes only on his destination which finally seemed to be coming towards them rather than running away.

"_The boy feels like a burden." _The angel bluntly stated, obviously the man only cared about why Teito had run from him. _"It's his nature. He is a rash young lad, one that makes many mistakes for the sake of others. I liked him better when he didn't care about any of that."_

"You mean when he was a war slave?"

"…_my mistake. But the fact of the matter still stands. He cares for you to the point that it is rather sickening. I mean, my young adorable little master with the likes of you? How old are you, bishop? Three hundred? Or did I shoot too low, as they say now-a-days." _The archangel could hear the bishop mumble something but could not quite put the words together, he sighed. _"Bishop, I am only joking. If you wish to know what my master truly thinks of you, I suggest you ask him yourself. Stop running like a coward."_

After a moment of silence, the priest's sights turned down to the boy. The small body in his arms slept soundly, level breaths escaped him through a partly opened mouth. The archangel finally gave his master the rest he so desperately deserves.

Frau continued his walk forward, finally reaching the giant slab of rock which, a few moments ago, seemed to take an eternity to get to. The sounds of crickets overpowered the silence all around. No more sounds of pursuit. Staggering, he made his way into the first cavern he found along the mountain's face. It was damp, of course, but it was deep enough to hide.

Finally having reached his goal, Frau's mortal body finally began to shut down. He had to drag his legs in order to keep them moving, and the heavy bundle in his arms was making walking even more difficult. Once reaching the deepest part of the cave, he kicked a few stones aside, making a spot for the teen to sleep.

Slowly, he placed the boy down, wrapping the thin coat closer around the small body. He sat down beside the boy, wondering if the wood outside was too wet to make a fire. A gloved hand stroked the teen's dark hair, the boy continued to sleep soundly though he shivered every now and again. It was as if the drama of the day had not affected Teito at all.

"…your master" Frau spoke suddenly, softly. "…is the sun to my cold world." Slowly, hesitantly, Frau placed a kiss on the boy's soft brown hair. The teen stirred lightly under Frau's sudden touch, easily settling down again. The blond pulled away, quickly standing to his feet to make his way outside.

The chilled midnight air did nothing to his already cold body, at this moment all he wanted was a nice hot shower. Once they reached the church, he was taking a long dip in the bath.

x-x-x

Teito blinked his sore eyes open, sitting himself up from his spot. A shiver ran through him as a sneeze found its way out of his nose. Quickly, he pulled the coat closer to himself, no longer smelling the spiced scent that was once embedded on the coat. It smelled of dirt and filth now but none the less, he clenched the coat tighter.

The sound of coming footsteps startled the teen; he looked into the darkness to make no sense of the lingering shadows.

"Frau?"

"Looks like the brat finally woke up."

The tall blond began to stack small sticks near the boy, his night vision slightly better than the teen's. Using his zaiphon, the bishop easily started a fire by the boy's feet. Calmly, Frau stacked thicker pieces of wood around the small fire, noticing the boy scoot closer to the warmth.

"What time is it?" the teen asked. It looked like he knew nothing of the little chat Frau and Mikhail had.

"Some time after one or two in the morning. You should try getting some more sleep."

Teito rubbed his hands together as he placed them close to the fire. Green hues trailed slowly towards the bishop, noticing how…_depressed_ the man looked.

"…Frau, what happened? How'd we get here?"

"Show me your right leg."

Teito blinked, sights turning to his leg. He pushed it out from under the coat, wincing as he tried to extend it. Frau crawled over to him, pushing up the boy's pant leg to reveal the extent to the boy's injury. His knee was bloodied and bruised, maybe even shattered from what the bishop could see. He growled, falling forward to rest his head on the boy's chest. Frau had been driving so recklessly he failed to cleanly dodge the attacks the military dogs threw their way whenever they caught up to them. And this was the one person he wanted to protect with his life.

"I'm sorry, Teito. I'm so sorry."

Heat crawled up the teen's neck and settled nicely into his cheeks. Frau hardly called him by his name; it just seemed so…strange. Not knowing what to do, or what was going on, Teito did all he could at the moment. He brushed his hand through the man's blond hair.

"F-Frau, d-don't worry about it. I'll get better. We just have to get to the church."

"No, no. I said I would protect you, I promised and I can't even do that simple act. I had to be saved by an annoying piece of rock. Why can't I do anything right? Why do I always…hurt you?"

The teen hugged the larger male, nuzzling the dip of his neck. Teito couldn't even feel the pain in his leg. In fact, he still felt he could move it, only it was stiff now.

"Frau, I think you're the one that needs sleep. And you are protecting me; I'm the one causing trouble for you. Frau…" the teen bit his lip, catching himself before he told Frau the unthinkable. Before he confessed to something. "Thank you for coming for me."

Frau pulled away, his mind and body tired from being overused and overworked. He watched as his hand slipped through dirty brown hair. He watched as he drew closer to the boy, resting his forehead on the teen's. Frau could feel the hot breath of the living teen before him; Teito's face was stained red as he forced his breathing through his parted mouth. Both their heads felt light and not all there. Teito gulped, turning his head down from the bishop. Frau pulled the boy onto his lap. If Teito was going to sleep on cold stone, then what difference did it make if the bishop held him?

Frau was almost sure he would have kissed the boy at that moment. He was not going to denying it now. Something in him changed, their time spent together changed him.

"Teito don't…ever go with that man again. Promise me. Promise me you will never go near Ayanami-."

"I promise." The teen quickly replied. Never again would he do something so stupid. He was delusional at the time. Now he knew he was someone special to the bishop, exactly what was something still of a mystery but Teito knew full well that wherever the teen might runaway to, the bishop was sure to follow and bring him back.

"Kid," the blond spoke hoarsely, there was something he needed to get off his chest, no matter how embarrassing or pointless. "There's something I need to tell you…"

**A/N: To warn you now. Major OOC in the next chapter. I mean, I don't know how Frau, or Teito, will react to what Frau has to say about Teito ._.** **I'll try to keep Frau in character as much as I can, 'cause I know it can get annoying when characters aren't. Don't you love Mikhail? :D I do, let's hope we see him in future chapters ;9**


	7. Whiskey

**Warning: grammatical errors (small but I know they're there...), retarded transition in the beginning..., 'spoilers' and just plain random drama. **

**A/N: This chapter took me F O R E V E R to write. I rewrote it three times, each with different outcomes and I think this might have been the best out of them all. Or, at least one that kept the characters **_**in**_** character xD I'll post version 2 as an alternate. It won't flow with the story (and I'll address it as such so no one can say they got confused) just for those who want to give it a read, yeah? :) Well, moving on, enjoy the read!**

**Chapter Seven**

**Whiskey**

Frau ran a shaking hand through russet hair, allowing his mind to wander to a place he wished it would stop trudging through. He was at war with himself, and didn't understand why. So many questions, so many whys and no answer to fill in.

The bishop's eyes trailed off towards the cave's mouth; he could just barely distinct the small rain drops against the dark background of trees. His stupidity, that's what placed them in this situation and he had no means to get himself out. Maybe he should just tell the kid what was clearly on his mind.

'_But what if it's not true?' _he thought, _'I'm not even sure what's on my mind…, feelings? Ugh.'_

The angel's threats meant nothing to him, but his own pride would. It would haunt him to know that he made himself vulnerable, like some _'chick'_.

He huffed lightly, absentmindedly stroking the boy's hair as if he was some feline who lay its head quietly on his lap, as he turned his sights towards the dying fire. The flame taunted him, swaying her scorching hands towards him and quickly pulling back. A small distaste boiled inside him; he hated the fire, purely loath it for no good reason. Before he could fully comprehend why he did it, Frau pulled his foot back only to push it forward with force, digging up moist gravel and dumping it on the tiny blaze.

They were immediately engulfed in darkness; a tiny sizzle adding to the soft pound of rain hitting moist floor.

Teito shifted from his spot, disturbed from a slow coming sleep, where he used the Bishop's lap as a pillow, turning his head so he had a clear view of the ceiling, though at the moment, he could see nothing but black. He forced a lump down his throat.

"Frau."

"My foot slipped, sorry. I'll go get more wood."

Teito almost reached out to the bishop, prevent him from getting up but decided that preventing himself from getting brain damage was a much more important issue. The russet strained himself to keep upright as Frau stood without warning and walked hastily towards the dim lunar light.

With a sigh, the teen set himself back down on the ground, covering his eyes with an arm. At least he wasn't on Frau's lap when the bishop bolted; he would have sustained a worse injury if the cold hadn't made Teito move to the ground. But that was the least of his worries.

_'What was that all about?',_ he thought. Frau had sounded so dead, and to just get up and run out like that? Something was clearly bothering the bishop and only an idiot couldn't figure it out.

'_There's something I got to tell you…'_

Teito snorted, turning his back to the cold wind as he pulled the coat closer around him. How could he have been so stupid as to believe the bishop would actually tell him something? No denying Frau had a way with words but Teito could only imagine what could make the bishop so tongue-tied. It was clearly about him, but what exactly he couldn't understand. He was someone special to Frau, or so he told himself. Who else would bother to come to kidnap him from the academy?

Just when he made up his mind to demand an explanation, the sound of Frau's voice filled the eerily quite cave, along with another familiar tone he couldn't quite place.

"Like I would know something stupid like that! We've been chased since the First District, do you really think I had time to stop and read a stupid compass?"

"But Frau, isn't there only one road leading from the First District to the Seventh?" The voice was calm, cool, mixing in gracefully with the soft pitter of rain outside.

Teito forced himself to sit up, though his injured leg throbbed greatly as he did so. He squinted in the darkness, following the two black figures coming towards him.

"…Labrador-san?"

The man smiled at the sound of his name, though the teen clearly couldn't see. Frau lingered towards the cave's mouth as Labrador knelt beside Teito, who was now squinting so hard his eyes might as well been shut closed.

"Teito-kun, Frau tells me you're injured."

The brunette could have sworn he heard something in the form of a hiss coming from Frau's direction but that could have just been the wind. His eyes finally adjusting to the darkness around him, he turned to the blur that he could barley distinct as Labrador, though the light tint of his hair helped him the most in figuring where to look.

"Um," emerald hues trailed toward the towering shadow that was Frau, back to Labrador once more, forcing himself to look at one bishop only, "it's nothing bad."

"Nothing bad, he says…" Frau's silhouette retreated further towards the entrance.

But before Teito could protest and prove he was feeling rather fine, a crippling pain shot up his thigh and spread through the rest of him like poison, only his right foot was free of pain, it irritated as though a thousand needles were stabbing him instead. He held back a cry itching his throat and, instead, let it out as a soft murmuring grunt; his eyes began to water instantly.

"This is very bad, Teito-kun." Labrador had instigated the pain by ever so lightly cupping his hand on the teen's knee; he withdrew it and instead, held onto Teito's arm. "I'm going to pull you up so you can stand, yes?"

Teito nodded though he doubted Labrador noticed. Instead he voiced his answer: "yes" and was easily hoisted up by the violet haired male. With his entire body shivering in pain, Teito threw himself against the wall for support, suspending his injured leg slightly so as to not touch the ground.

Labrador lingered his gaze on the teen before him. Their difference in heights when they first met was not alarming, as it was (and still is) with Frau and Castor, but now it was clearly visible that Teito was growing, just mere inches separated them. Maybe four or five, this all thanks to Teito's pride that would not allow himself to be taunted by Frau. Labrador smiled, placing an arm on Teito's shoulder, gaining his attention.

"I'll carry you back to the Church."

Glad for the black around him, Teito's blood rushed to his face before he realized. He opened his mouth to speak but Frau clearly found something wrong with the proposal as well.

"Lab, the kid isn't that light, to tell you the truth. Can you really carry him all the way there? I mean, how far are we from the Church?"

Teito squinted towards the cave's mouth, unable to spot Frau's silhouette.

"Oh, only a mile or so," came the soft reply of Labrador, who didn't turn to speak.

"A stupid mile and I couldn't see shit from this fucken mountain…"

"Frau, language."

Teito watched as Labrador's outline turned in the darkness; he was now staring at the bishop's back.

"Come on, Teito-kun. The sooner we arrive at the Church, the sooner we can begin to mend your fractured knee."

It was one thing when Frau did it; the bishop clearly had no sense of shame, but Labrador? It just seemed so awkward. But, though hesitantly, Teito hopped forward, giving Labrador the signal to shrink down, he placed both his hands on the bishop's shoulders, firstly giving his bad leg then (much to his discomfort) his good one. Easily, the violet haired bishop hoisted the teen, looking rather odd carrying someone almost the same height as himself.

Unsure of what to do with his hands, Teito fumbled for a moment as Labrador began his walk towards the dimly lit night outside. Giving up, the teen placed both hands on the bishop's shoulders again, bending his head low to hide the distinct coloring he knew his face was getting. Ironically, Labrador smelled like lavender. One would think the bishop did it on purpose

Teito eyed his surroundings carefully as soon as the damp air of the cave was behind them. Frau was still no where to be seen, did he take off as soon as he could?

"Um, Labrador-san?"

"Yes, Teito-kun?"

Teito hesitated for a moment, somehow feeling that asking Frau's whereabouts were definitely none of his business, so he quickly covered up his hesitation with another question that popped into his head.

"How did you find us?"

A soft laugh, like a wind chime being brushed lightly in a summer breeze, came from the smaller bishop who continued at a steady pace down the mountain face.

"The flowers told me, of course."

A vibrant yellow erupted from the corner of Teito's line of sigh; he quickly turned to find a golden wildflower bloom in the mist of all the darkness, its leaf waved at him through the calm pattering drizzle. Slightly taken aback, Teito turned his sights back to the back of Labrador's head, almost forgetting the bishop's hobby.

"So that's how you did it," Frau replied, appearing beside the two as if he had been walking with them all along.

Teito turned, half startled, to the blond beside them. Though the moon shone brightly, grey clouds drifted across it, engulfing them in drizzle and darkness for periods of time, Teito could have sworn the bishop looked older, paler, than he had ever seen him before.

Catching Teito's bottle green eyes, Frau watched half amused as the teen quickly looked away; he chuckled lightly. Ignoring the teen's reaction, Frau continued his conversation with a casual light tone though a disturbing thought rattled in the back of his mind. Unconsciously, Frau gripped his right arm tightly, as if expecting a pain to flair up.

"You know, Lab, that's the reason some people don't take you seriously. Openly stating you talk to flowers and junk. Not saying I'm criticizing or anything–"

"Frau, I don't need to be taken seriously by anyone."

The blond bishop stared blankly as Labrador turned his head slightly to catch Frau from the corner of his soft lilac eyes, a smile played on his face.

"The only individuals who's opinions matter to me are Castor-san, Jio-sama and, of course, you. Teito-kun and his little friends as well, but I know they would never criticize me."

Like always, Labrador said the most heart-warming things that made conversations stop dead in their tracks. Frau didn't know how to reply to something like that. Maybe a thank you, but he wasn't sure. Instead, he settled for a nod of understanding, which seemed to satisfy the gardening bishop as he moved his sight back to the hardly traveled road.

"Is Teito-kun asleep?" Labrador asked as they walked in silence for a few moments.

Frau shifted his eyes towards the kid to indeed find that Teito was resting his head on Labrador's, eyes shut and mouth slightly open. Frau chuckled before he could help it.

"Hey," Frau released the hold on himself, "I can help you carry him; he's not that light anymore."

"Frau, you need your rest," Labrador quickly interjected and after a moment's pause, he started again, with a light and hushed tone: "How are you feeling?"

Frau, once again, unconsciously gripped his right arm; a hot feeling slowly began to spread. Labrador frowned as he stole a glance towards the blond.

"You could have asked for my assistance, Frau, when rescuing Teito-kun from Ayanami."

"It was my fault the brat ran in the first place," Frau growled, using his captured hand to ruffle his damp golden hair. "I needed to fix it," he murmured.

"You're ill…" Labrador whispered, as if afraid someone might overhear, bending his head down to catch sapphire eyes that kept to the ground. "You're fighting a losing battle."

The world suddenly became cold, winds ripped through the once serene forest, knocking loose limbs and pushing rocks the size of apples along the ground. A battle raged in the skies as thunder clasped, lightning streaked across the sky, rain pummeled down like hail and the once silvery moon was swallowed up by the dark clouds.

The group stopped as nature fought with itself, Labrador looked up to Frau with a look of concern, almost frightened concern, Frau couldn't speak, startled by the accusation.

Thunder clasped once more.

"Verloren's Scythe," Labrador's voice became lost in the wind, though Frau knew exactly what the bishop was saying. "It's overpowering you."

"No it's not!" Frau shouted against the wind. His leather gloves creaked as his hands fisted; muscle constricted, preparing for a fight that would never come. Sapphire eyes glared down to a worried face, his entire body shaking with fury. "No it's not," he repeated, tone lighter but not calmer. Frau almost wondered if he was reassuring himself or Labrador.

Slowly, Mother Nature began to calm herself, if only a bit, as the two bishops continued to stare at each other: Labrador as calm as ever, his face still showing worry, but Frau panted lightly, hoping the Adrenaline in his system would dissolve.

"Frau," Labrador looked away, slowly closing his eyes, "I'm sorry, I was wrong. But," lavender hues shifted towards the blond, hesitant and troubled, "I am here, Frau. Do not try to take every little burden on yourself. Now let's get back to the church, I fear Mother Nature is distressed with our conversation of Verloren."

Bishop Labrador led the way down the rocky slope leading towards the back entrance to the Barsburg Church; neither spoke, nor tried above the howling winds and thunder.

After their long hike (and Frau's longer journey), the stone floors of the Church's corridors greeted the traveling bishops with a relaxing walk rather than a sloping trudge. A few curious glances met them as they proceeded towards the medical ward of the structure; it was not even the break of dawn but seeing as Festivities were fast approaching, many woke to an early start to finish booths and such.

Frau looked over his shoulder as he opened a large oak door for Labrador to proceed through. Finding nothing amiss, the blond followed right after, closing the door behind him.

The room was small, quaint, nothing extravagant, but most of all, empty. A single twin sized bed lay in the middle of the room, its headboard against the opposite wall to the doors. A nightstand stood to the right with a plain lamp standing erect on it. Two comfy, beaten looking chairs lay pushed against the adjacent left wall, roughly three feet from the bed. Over the headrest of the bed, a simple wooden cross was nailed. No windows, only one door, minus the door to the closet, which stood at the left side of the bed.

With a struggle, Labrador laid Teito on the bed, whom immediately woke up as his body rippled with pain once more.

Teito lay disoriented for a moment as the pain slowly began to subside; he began to remember where he was, and why everything hurt. With a painful sigh, Teito watched as the violet haired bishop began to rip his pant leg clear across. He would now be the only teenager to own a 'shants', shorts and pants, or maybe he would call them 'ports'; Teito chuckled despite himself.

Frau watched the scene unfold as he leaned against the two large entrance doors. He didn't dare go nearer, for more than one reason. Why did he always end up in so much trouble? The kid was injured, not to mention most of the eye of Mikhail was stolen; Labrador was probably exhausted and was still treating Teito, the whole bottom of his bishop robes were drenched in much; and himself? So many problems, unsure of which to tackle first. Firstly, he forgot to report to Castor, who always seemed to want to know _everything_ that was going on, then the old fart Jio wanted him back two weeks ago to help with the preparations for the upcoming festival, which seemed too late to do, seeing that the festivities would take place in a couple days. And ignoring all his bishop duties, there was the kid. That's where all his problems were coming from. Frau was used to ignoring Castor's needed for minutely reports and Jio's need of him even though there were other disposable bishops around. His chores, the orphans; he was able to juggle everything and now, this. Teito could have easily fallen into the 'orphans' category but the stupid brat…the stupid brat found a way to squirm out of there and place himself above everything else, even his need for a dirty magazine.

Frau rubbed his face with both hands, wanting everything to disappear, wanting to figure out what indeed was wrong with him, what was wrong with his arm, brain and heart, a heart he was supposed to have given up but then again, just because he was a ghost, didn't mean he couldn't…_that_. He was still human, partly, though he was expecting to…_that_, with a large breasted woman, not a…

Blue hues shot open, Frau's breath was racing though he's been immobile for a good fifteen minutes now. He shook his blond head of hair, willing the thoughts to leave.

"Tch!"

Frau looked up, slowly getting over his panic attack but not for long. He watched as the teen, clearly in pain, gripped the white sheets tightly into his tiny fists, his head arched back, entire body shivering as the brunette willed himself to keep from moving so Labrador could heal the wounds properly. A single though, one stupid thought raced through his Mind's eye, and Frau knew immediately he was in trouble.

Without warning, without explanation, Frau threw himself out of the room, slamming the door behind him as he ran, _ran_, down the church corridors. With some awkward moves, Frau skidded around the early walkers and down into an empty hallway.

Finally, slowing down to a halt, Frau took a look around, the hall was deserted. He didn't even know what section of the church he was in, and somehow didn't care as long as it was empty. He threw his tall frame against the wall, slowly sliding down until he sat on the floor, his legs outstretched in front of him. His arms lay limply at his sides, eyes closed as he tried to remain calm.

'_It's just 'cause I've been frustrated, haven't _relieved_ myself in weeks. It has nothing to do with the kid, nothing at all…'_

The horrible picture replayed in his head though he fought so desperately to push it back: Teito squirmed underneath him, pleading to Frau to release him but Frau was hungry, and here was his morsel. He could hear himself grunt, he could hear Teito's muffled moans along with the creaking of the bed underneath him…

"Stop It!"

His voice echoed down the hall. He lay frozen, thankful that he snapped himself out of thought. As minutes passed, the corridors remained still, unmoving. He didn't attract unwanted attention. Good. Frau let out a sigh, slumping further into the ground.

What he would give for a good alcoholic beverage right now.

**A/N: If you guys are frustrated with Frau, that means I've done my job :] **


	8. Bedside Issues

**Ta-Da! :D**

**New chapter. Hope you guys can muscle through stupid errors I might have overlooked. **

* * *

"Frau," a voice broke through the silence, startling the bishop back into the present. "I thought I recognized the voice but now I'm confused."

Frau squinted into the dark, recognizing the outline of a fellow bishop, the white robes easy to make out even with the little light drifting from the hallway entrance. And not to mention, the glare of glasses also helped with the identification.

"Castor," Frau sighed. "What do you want?"

"Many things," Castor replied with a light tone. "None of which you have ever been able to give me, though. Where's Teito-kun?"

Frau rubbed his face with both hands, his craving for alcohol spiking as fatigue swept him.

"Hospital ward," the blond muffled.

"And you're not with him?" Frau didn't answer. "Frau, I just saw Labrador," Frau visibly tensed. "He told me a _very_ edited version of why you and Teito are in this state. Now, why would Labrador ever keep anything from me, even if it is about you?"

Frau continued in silence, keeping his eyes closed as his arms fell at either side of him. Anyone else passing would have thought Frau to be asleep.

Castor's eye twitched as he watched the blond. Annoyance crept over him and before he could think of a more _sophisticated _way of going about things, he kicked Frau's leg with as much force as possible.

"Now, get up and follow."

Frau was ready to protest as he rubbed his aching leg but the stern look on Castor told him there was no getting around it. With a sigh, he stood and followed.

- - -

Castor closed the door behind him as Frau led the way in. Though the sun was beginning to rise outside, there was no way of allowing it in inside Castor's room, the place was completely windowless. An artificial light, standing on top of a simple wooden desk, lit the area. A bed could be seen shoved into the farthest corner, the desk just beside it, a wardrobe shoved at the other corner and to fill the gap in the middle: a black casket with the emblem of the church embedded silver. In every nook and cranny, life size dolls in all stages of completion stared off in every direction with soulless eyes.

The red-headed priest made his way around Frau, who was staring down at the casket for it reminded him of his own, and made his way to his wardrobe, pulling a bottle and two crystal cups. Using his desk, though cluttered with papers, pens and such, Castor poured a good amount of amber liquid into the glasses, striding over to Frau and presented him the cup.

"Looked like you needed it," Castor shrugged in response to Frau's skeptical look.

Hesitant, though only for a moment, the blond took the cup and forced it down his throat in one gulp. Immediately, his throat burned with fury; he could feel as the liquid traveled down his throat, into his stomach, which began to burn more than he would have liked, and through his entire body as if rushing through each and every one of his veins. He coughed as the liquid gave a strong aftertaste in his mouth, unable to keep water from his eyes.

"What," Frau raised the glass as if inspecting it, "the hell is this stuff?"

Castor sighed, placing his own filled cup on the casket below him and went to stripping his bishop robes off, wearing a similar blue suit as Frau underneath. As he threw them aside, the rusty-brunet dropped himself near the casket, finding a comfortable position with his back leaning on it.

The blond glanced around, gave up, and made himself a seat across from Castor. A moment of silence passed between them before Castor turned partially to face Frau, placing an elbow on the black wood as he used his free hand to thrust the filled cup towards the other.

"I call it Hell's Whiskey though outside this room, we just call it whiskey."

Frau took the glass cup in his hands, feeling a bit uneasy about having to drink it again.

"You know," Castor began, noticing the skeptical look on Frau, "you're suppose to drink it slowly. Sip some, let it sit in your mouth for about three seconds, then swallow. I forgot to warn you."

"I forgot to warn you, he says," Frau hissed into the glass as he raised it up to his mouth, following Castor's instructions of how to drink the amber liquid shortly after.

Frau had just found his new favorite alcoholic drink. Instead of an immense burning, it was a warm feel that spread through his entire body, making him feel light and sleepy. But the feeling soon died down, he frowned into his cup.

"What the hell? That's it?"

"Keep drinking, after a few more sips, the feeling stays," Castor informed.

"So," Frau sipped his glass, "who's this 'we'?" He held out the cup to elaborate.

"Me and Labrador," Castor suppressed a laugh at the surprised look on the blond. "You think you're the only one with a bad habit? Don't count yourself special, Frau."

The red-head stood, fetched the bottle of Hell's Whiskey, and sat in the same spot he vacated, this time full body facing Frau. They looked just like two friends sitting for a game of poker, though over a casket, and no cards present.

"Labrador helped me make this," Castor spoke after he poured himself his own glass.

"Why?" Frau still couldn't picture the gentle bishop or the stern one drinking. He kept his eye open for when Castor would start.

"…" Castor stared into his cup, recalling memories of past. "Because, it's nice to feel warm once in a while. Isn't that why you sit in the tub for a good hour or go looking for your one-night-stand every night?"

Frau shrugged as he watched himself rotate the cup on top of the casket.

"What happened to you and Teito-kun out there?" Castor cut straight to the point.

"How did you make this stuff?" Frau held up his glass towards the only light that cast a pathetic stream of light. Rather than the normal whiskey he drank whenever he could outside the church, this looked like molten gold. Not to mention the peculiar smell and taste to it; it wasn't bad just strange.

"Stop trying to change the subject. What is Teito-kun to you, Frau?"

At that moment, Frau decided to take a sip of his drink, hoping to buy himself an excuse but did not expect the doll-maker to ask that question. In his surprised state, he swallowed more than a sip; the burning became unpleasant, forcing him to spit out whatever was left in his mouth.

"That isn't easy, or cheap, to make Frau but looks like I asked the right question," Castor sighed, stealing back the cup before Frau could spill any more on top of his sleeping quarters.

"We're just…" friends? Does one with Frau's age address a sixteen year old kid 'friend'? "He's Teito! He's just there!"

Castor slapped his forehead, unable to understand the stupidity that always seemed to pour out of Frau's mouth.

"'_He's just there'_? Is that anyway to…? You're Frau, so I guess it doesn't matter anyway. Look, you might think I'm stupid Frau but I can assure you I am a hell of a lot smarter than you. I've known things before your little mind could comprehend them. Now, answer the question, before I have to force it out of you."

Frau growled as he stared eye to eye with Castor, who neither backed down nor flinched but easily returned his poisoned stare.

"I know you want someone to confide in."

Frau cursed underneath his breath, breaking eye contact with the other as he looked to the ground behind him. There was a spot beside him on the wooden floor that looked oddly like old blood.

"What goes on in my '_little mind_' doesn't concern you, Castor." Frau glared at the other once more, "nor does it concern anyone. That _kid_ was, and still is, what he's always been since the day he fell on top of me from that rock slide: my responsibility. I'm only taking care of him until he can take care of himself."

"Is that so?" Castor shrugged, satisfied with Frau's actions and answer, and helped himself to a sip of Hell's Whiskey. "Nice job you're doing by the way."

Out of the corner of his chocolate hues, Castor took notice that the other bishop tensed at his statement. A sinister smile played on his lips as he kept his sights on his whiskey.

"Yes, when I went inside, Labrador had finished mending Teito-kun's bones. The poor child asked where you'd run off to, worried that something was wrong with you since you ran out so fast. He was actually telling Labrador that he should have checked you first; made sure you had a clean bill of health before doing anything to him. Now why would Teito-kun ever suggest anything like that, when you are obviously taking responsibility of his well-being-"

"Shut up."

Castor raised an eyebrow, his face free of emotion except of false surprise. "Excuse me?"

"Like I can really make sure the kid doesn't get a single injury outside these walls."

Frau's glare was beyond anything the doll-maker had ever seen on him. Frau, the usually care-free bishop, looked like Death himself but Castor made sure not to let the uneasiness on him show.

"Can you really think that you've put Teito-kun's well-being above all else? You could have prevented it, you know. If you'd made sure Teito didn't run off in the first place-."

"Don't you DARE bring that up!"

Frau stood abruptly, finally startling the other who did not dare move now. Castor watched as Frau fought with himself, the blond's chest heaved up and down, fists clenched and unclenched, and that disturbing glare didn't falter one bit.

"Do not," Frau's voice lowered, "bring it up." Was it not punishment enough that his conscious would not let him forget? He didn't need Castor reminding him.

At that precise moment, the door swung open, revealing Labrador in a halo of light. Both winced, already accustomed to the dark room. Castor placed a hand over his eyes, squinting at Labrador's outline in the doorway.

"Frau," Labrador spoke slowly, almost as if he was in the mist of the conversation from the beginning, "Teito-kun is asking for you."

Nervous lilac shifted between both male's in the room, unsure of what the request might accomplish.

Glad for an excuse to leave, Frau forced his way out of the door, jabbing his elbow into the smaller bishop as he went. Labrador winced but didn't dare to protest. He watched as Frau's frame disappeared around a corner before turning to Castor, who held his head in one hand while his other drifted the glass up to his lips for a drink.

"You should not have done that," Labrador spoke just above a whisper.

Castor placed his glass on his sarcophagus, his free hands rubbing circles on his temples.

"Well," Castor began but was immediately cut off by a completely out of character shout from Labrador.

"You were provoking him!"

Startled twice already, Castor turned toward Labrador, a bit shocked to hear the smaller bishop shouting. The doll-maker cleared his throat, eyeing the other cautiously.

"Labrador…"

"I asked of you, leave them be and this is what you turn around and do?!" The gardener's shouts became soft cries of surprise as he paced the small width of the room.

As Castor noticed that the other was no longer infuriated, merely surprised, he stood to his feet, all confidence reestablished.

"Do you think I approve," he emphasized the word, "of this relationship?"

"It is not up to you! For the first time since I met him, Frau is finally opening up to someone other than a bartender!"

"It won't work!" Castor felt himself near hysterics. How anyone could ever imagine a man like Frau commit himself to a young man like Teito, they had to be right out of their minds. "Since when was Frau ever interested in the same gender? He's only playing with Teito like a lion promising not to slaughter the poor lamb! Frau doesn't know what he wants!"

"What Frau has is sincere," Labrador whispered to a wall.

"And do you actually see the two living a normal, happy life?"

The priest remained silent, unable to face the other.

"No, of course not! Teito…deserves a nice life, none of which includes Frau."

"How can you be so sure?" Labrador muttered more to himself but Castor heard all the same.

"I know Frau," he answered to no one in particular.

"You know what he used to be, not what he is now." And without a moment to allow for a response, Labrador left Castor alone in his room.

Castor swore under his breath, striding towards his bedroom door and slammed it shut; he was immediately swallowed in dim darkness. The only thing he could ever dream of doing now was to finish his whiskey and sleep the days away like he was supposed to be doing, not living his half life God threw on him. Something he and Frau agreed on for themselves.

"It won't work. With things like us, love never works," Castor mumbled as he sprawled himself across his coffin, a half empty glass of whiskey in hand.

- - -

Frau knocked once on the door, immediately heard a "come in" and swung the door forward cautiously.

Three nuns, all with vibrant smiles, were running around the small, shabby room. One was fitting flowers into a vase near Teito's bed; another was fluffing a pillow for him while the last was sweeping away dust that had accumulated over the time in which the room remained vacant.

Just watching the women at work made Frau question if he should be doing something himself when the Sister that was making sure Teito was happy and comfortable, strode over to him, hooked him by the arm and brought him by Teito's bedside.

"Bishop Frau can take care of you, Teito-kun, for the time being until one of us is free from our duties."

"Oh no, there's no need, Sister…"

"But we will worry about our little lamb," cried the sister by Teito's bed as she continued to rearrange the flowers without needing to look at them.

"I'm fine! Labrador said all I needed was to rest for a few hours and I can start walking again."

"But what if you need something?"

"What if you have an accident?"

"Yah, what if you pee your bed? Do you want the Sister's to have to clean up that mess?"

"No one asked you, Frau," Teito grumbled through clenched teeth as his eyes shifted to glare at the bishop. Frau returned his death glare with a smile.

"Don't worry ladies, your little lamb is in safe hands," Frau reassured them only to get them to leave. They would get a good yelling if they weren't out finishing up their chores, from the looks of it; it was already past dawn, maybe seven.

Reluctantly, each one left but not without giving Teito small pecks on his cheeks, leaving him tomato red as they wished him good health before disappearing behind the double oak doors.

"Seriously, what did you do to win them over?" Frau asked as he watched the last Sister leave, bending slightly as if he would miraculously be able to see underneath their ankle-length robes.

The brunet reached behind him, extracted his extra pillow and flung at Frau's big head, smiling widely as it made impact but soon his smile faded as seconds past without a single response from Frau. The air between them grew dense, easily making Teito uncomfortable. Frau was too quiet and he knew that was always a bad thing.

The clock beside Teito's bed thumped away the seconds; the teen shifted in his sheets, unsure of what to say or if he should apologize.

"It's your fault you know," Frau forced himself to say, as if the words were caught in his throat.

"What…?" Teito began but never finished.

"You, I'm so stupid. I didn't recognize… the whiskey, it smelled and…felt like… Castor was right; I'm too slow to realize anything."

"Frau, what are you talking about?" Now he was really concerned, maybe Frau had sustained an injury. "Frau, are you okay?"

"No, I'm not alright." Frau straightened himself out, shoving both his hands deep into his pockets as to keep the teen from noticing his shaking.

"Well spit it out then!"

"It's you!" Frau shouted more than what either would have liked.

Quickly realizing what he was doing, Frau reminded himself to keep his voice low as he stalked towards the bedridden Teito, who could only put up a strong front though deep down he didn't feel it.

The blond shoved both hands at either side of Teito's head, forcing the teen to fall back into bed to make as much distance between them. Frau clenched the pillow with all his might; Teito could hear small ripping but what surprised him the most was that Frau looked pained.

"What's me?" Teito pushed, "Frau, what were you going to tell me back in the cave?"

"…I don't know," Frau hissed. "There's a fine line you know," blue hues searched emerald for something, anything, to keep him going, "between want and must, between need and gotta have," he could have sworn he saw a spark, a dull spark of understanding in those deep green eyes, "and I swear to God, I've never been so confused in my whole entire life, if you can even call what I have now a life."

"Frau, what are you talking about?" Teito whispered with a stern tone though unsure if he should even speak.

"It's your fault, for always being there, for always getting in the way. I never knew how much I would…_care_," slowly, Frau sat himself on the bed and never faltered at keeping Teito pinned to the mattress with both arms. He leaned forward, resting his forehead on top of Teito's; a sigh escaped him as he closed his eyes. The whiskey smelled exactly like this: like of dirt, old paper, blood, metal, and the odd tinge of strawberries.

"Frau?"

Sitting there, Frau could only wonder one last thing: Did Teito taste like the whiskey too?

Before his mind could catch up with his body, Frau placed gloved fingers on Teito's cheek, pushing his head slightly to one side while he tilted his own off to the other. For a brief moment that lasted eternity, the bishop hovered just millimeters from his mark; the teen's hot breath tickled his lips.

"I tried…forgetting but the want, the _must_ crept back. Now that I consider it, I can't turn my back on it. My head keeps telling me it's the worst idea in the world but my heart…"

Cold lips brushed over warm before it could be double-thought. Unsatisfied, Frau pushed himself more fiercely down onto the teen, prying open Teito's mouth with a skilled tongue. He tasted every corner of Teito's mouth; surprised at the teens own awkward eagerness but even through his mindless abyss, Frau could still hear Castor's accusations. Slowly, a poison like nothing Frau had ever felt before began to burn holes in his fantasies.

Frau pushed down onto the bed, forcing himself to stand as he strode towards the door without an explanation.

Teito, confused above anything though showed anger, sat up as he watched the blond turn the handle to the door.

"Wait," he called out and Frau stopped in his tracks, "what the hell was that?! You, you blame all of this on me and leave without an explanation?! What the-!"

"I'll ask Labrador to come check up on you," Frau replied to the door as he pulled it open and made his way out, making sure to slam it behind him. Twice already he's had thoughts he wish he hadn't, not to mention he finally acted on the impulse burning in him since God knows when. It was something sweet the bishop never expected, now he wished he'd never acted on it.

The whiskey, it didn't taste anything like Teito, who at the moment tasted like chocolate. Probably something he received from the Sisters. No, Frau finally understood the meaning behind his whiskey taste: salt water, tears.

The warm feeling he had quickly died, engulfing him in the never-ending cold he was already used to. If only he could go ask Castor for more whiskey, unable to go to the direct source which he now understood as well. How long ago it seemed now, when the bishop had wrapped his arms around the small warmth and kept him alive through the loss of his friend. That same forgiving, gentle fire spread through his veins as Hell's Whiskey and now he wished he'd never tasted the molten gold. It made him crave it all the more but not in the liquid form, but in flesh form that is Teito Klein.

The scary thought: Frau knew that now no one else could satisfy his need for company.

"Shit," he sighed as he strode towards the morning light and the loud busting noise.

* * *

**Cliff Hanger! They kissed! How sweet! :D**

**Frau still has cold-feet about all this! Grrr!**

**Time to get over it, foo! D:**

**Festivities are on their way, lets hope for the best, shall we?**


	9. Winning the Prize

**Kay, probably really stupid of me to update so soon, but what the H! :D**

**I finished writing this last night...and took two hours to review/edit it so there might be more mistakes than what I might like :x**

**Hope you guys can muscle through it, but if you've been with me since the beginning, you're probably used to it xD**

**MUSHY LOVE!!**

**(I make the characters drabble a lot in this...)**

* * *

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Festivities were well on their way on the grounds of the Barsburg Church. Different varieties of smells drifted in the wind, making everyone forget of diets they were supposed to keep or of their already full stomachs. Children and adults alike were enjoying the laughter and pleasure of games and dining that always came along with the churches celebrations. All but one, that is.

A group of rowdy bishop novices shouted in support for their fellow comrade who was attempting to dunk Archbishop Jio into a tank of water. The sisters running the booth could not keep the smiles off their faces for long; the ball continued to get closer and closer to its mark.

Soon laughter and a rowdy whooping erupted, followed by a sudden surge of apologies, though their voices still ran with laughter as the archbishop pulled himself out of the pool, he enjoyed the sudden splash as well.

"Teito, Teito! You missed it! They dunked…" Hakuren's voice drifted away as he watched his roommate stare off into the distance, a blank look in his emerald eyes. Raising a brow, the long-haired blond approached the smaller male and poked at his side, a place he knew full well the smaller teen was ticklish.

Teito immediately jerked away, pausing in an awkward stance before relaxing again, noticing the familiar face of his friend. Feeling almost ashamed, Teito looked away. He knew he was suppose to be laughing and having a grand time but Teito couldn't force himself to have fun, a nagging thought would not allow it. As much as he tried, the brunet could not force a smile, even if it was for the sake of his friend.

"Teito, what's wrong?" Hakuren finally asked. Ever since the boy had come back about a week ago from his prolonged assignment outside the church walls, he kept to himself and would only speak when spoken to. If he had not known the brunet for this long now, about two years and counting, Hakuren would have passed it off as Teito being the unsociable character that he was but the boy changed drastically, opening up to the blond teen so much that he sometimes had to hide to avoid another lengthy conversation about the brunet's day. After a moment, Hakuren took the silence as Teito's response to his question; he bluntly refused to speak of it. With a sigh, the blond teen ruffled his bangs, trying his best to come up with a way for the other to respond to him. A smirk crossed his face. "True friends tell each other everything, do they not, Teito? Or do I take the silence as your way of refusing my friendship?"

Teito groaned as he hung his head down in defeat. He turned partially to glare at the blond, who could not remove the smirk that almost seemed to be permanent on his face.

"That was low, Hakuren."

"If I did not say it, you would still be wallowing in self-pity. Now, tell me what's wrong. It's a beautiful day; everyone is having fun, everyone except you."

The blond expected to hear that Teito was still grieving over his lost friend, the pink fyulong, Mikage, but when he heard what came out of Teito's mouth, he was beyond surprised.

"Hakuren…how do you know if you love someone?"

Feeling an awkward conversation coming into view, the blond turned to look at the sky as he rubbed his nape; a red coloration began to form on his cheeks. "You really don't know?" After a moment of silence, Hakuren looked down to see Teito swinging his head side to side. He continued to do so as Hakuren continued to stare. "Teito, you can stop."

Feeling slightly dizzy, Teito held his head in one hand, anticipating eyes on the long-haired male.

"You really…" Hakuren folded his arms across his chest, eyeing the other carefully, "don't know?"

"I was raised as a combat slave since I could remember. As soon as I could, I was placed in the Academy and after that, well, I came here. We never studied…" Teito coughed, "…'love' as a subject in the academy or for bishop training."

Hakuren halted his working mind for a moment. They didn't? The blond teen could have sworn he had this sort of conversation with Castor and Labrador.

"Hakuren?" Teito asked after a moment of silence.

Without warning, the blond teen took Teito by the hand and led him through the festival grounds. If they were going to have an awkward conversation, it best be not around a crowd.

Teito looked puzzled as he stared at the back of Hakuren's head, unsure of where he was being led to. Children were running by them, adults were walking around them but Teito kept his sights on his friend. His vision blurred for a moment and Hakuren's long hair soon was cut-short, a military uniform on his shoulders. He shut his eyes, his hand unconsciously tightened around Hakuren's, and allowed himself to be lead forward blindly.

- - -

Hakuren soon lead Teito into one of the church's gardens, far away from the festivities. His fingers loosened from Teito's hand and he found that it took a moment before Teito did the same. A smile crossed his face but he quickly pushed it aside, turning nonchalant to the brunet.

"So," he began once Teito's attention finally focused on him, "tell me everything."

Immediately, the younger teen sighed, finding himself a bench to sit on. "Everything what? I asked you the question remember?" Teito reached out to pick a flower from a shrub beside him but instantly forgot which flowers were edible.

"Teito, you're simple to read, like a children's picture book. Something is obviously bothering you, especially with that loaded question you asked."

"Well I'm sorry I'm so easy to read," he pouted, deliberately keeping his eyes away from Hakuren, who took the liberty of standing in front of him.

"It's not a bad thing, Teito. It is…how should I put it? Um, it's like you hide behind nothing, straightforward…" still unsatisfied with the explanation he finally added: "pure."

Teito looked up to Hakuren, an eyebrow raised.

"Teito, you know of my family, Oak, and who they are. Politicians and military personnel. Those kinds of people always hide behind masks to never let others take advantage of them, such as my father. Never once had I seen him without his mask, and even my mother. She always hid her true self whenever Father was around so it was constantly. But you, you never hide anything, what you feel you show on your face. You do not deceive; it's a good thing, Teito."

Still uncertain if he should consider it a compliment or an insult, Teito refused to comment. Hakuren sighed and took the liberty of sitting beside Teito.

"Are you going to explain, or am I going to have to guess?"

"I don't think you can guess this," Teito huffed, smirking lightly as he turned to his blond friend.

"Well, let's see," amethyst eyes turned from emerald to gaze out in front, Hakuren's mind began to list all the possibilities with the information he had. "Love, when someone asks about that, they are unsure if they are experiencing themselves. Since you say you're inexperienced, it makes sense. Now, who can Teito Klein fall for?" The blond decided that the rest should be thought in silence. _'He's never showed interest in any of the Sisters. Razette is a possibility, though unlikely. He's hardly traveled out of the church walls to meet a girl outside…ignoring the 'it-might-be-a-girl' there's always…well, me, Mikage or more possibly…never goes a day when he and Bishop Frau aren't together, even if they are fighting…and if he doesn't know that he's in love because they're always fighting…"_

Eyes wide, heart racing, Hakuren abruptly stood to his feet, pointing an accusing finger at Teito. "You're in love with Bishop Frau!?"

Instantly, Teito's face took on a deep scarlet color, startled by the sudden accusation. "Who ever said I was in love!?" He quickly retorted.

"You did!"

"I never did! I just asked you how you would now!"

"It's obvious that you are if you asked a question like that!"

"No it isn't!"

Hakuren calmed himself, the shouting was getting them no where and he obviously made Teito defensive. "Okay, I'll ask calmly this time. Are you in love with Bishop Frau?"

"No!" Teito shouted immediately, his chest constricted tightly. "I mean…no, no I'm not…maybe…I don't know, alright?" Teito hung his head; feeling tired all of a sudden.

Hakuren sat himself down once more. He looked at Teito's pathetic form, his heart suddenly reaching out to the confused boy.

"When?" He whispered.

"When what?" Teito returned, refusing to look at Haruken. But even though most of his face was hidden, the blond teen could see that Teito's ears were bright red.

"When did you start thinking that?"

"…I don't know, maybe for a few weeks, maybe longer, I was just slow at realizing. Like I told you, I've never really…felt like this before." Teito forced himself to speak through a closing throat.

"…and Mikage? Have you ever felt that way about him?"

"I…I don't think so. Of course, I liked him but…with…Frau it feels kinda…different."

"Truth be told, Teito, I've never experienced love either."

Surprised, Teito lifted his head to get a better view of Hakuren; the boy was red in the face too and refused to return his stare. "Really?"

"Yeah," the blond cleared his throat, "I've never really taken a liking to females and I've never been that brave enough to cross that line towards males but I've read enough books to understand the concept of it. Love comes in all kinds of forms, shapes and sizes. There is love for a friend, for a stranger and even to an inanimate object but they are all different. Especially the love that causes two to join indelibly."

"But how," Teito whispered, "do you know?"

"Teito, how does Bishop Frau make you feel?"

The brunet turned his sights away from Hakuren and onto his lap where he fiddled with his hands. Was it stupid that he never bothered to ask himself that question?

"How he makes me feel? Well, he annoys me, makes me angry, frustrates me beyond all reason, he embarrasses me, and makes fun of me but…he can also make me happy, he makes me feel better whenever I have a bad day or when I hurt myself. And whenever he's not there…I get scared, I worry and I…well, I miss him when he's not there," Teito finished with a whisper.

"When you truly love someone, you always want them there, no matter how many times you fight or argue. At the end of the day, you just want the fighting to stop and for all to be forgiven. Love doesn't always make sense, I know, but it doesn't have to. Plain and simple, you want them with you, through the good and the bad. Your heart beats abnormally when they are around you, you start feeling self conscious, and all you want is to touch them. Whether it be holding their hand, or holding them entirely." Hakuren paused for a moment, a warm smile creeping along his face as he watched Teito struggle with himself, "You feel like you're nothing without them; they have a piece of you as you them. You accept them for who they are. Mistakes and all. And even when you know their flaws, you just can't seem to let them go."

The far off noise of the festival soon reached their ears as neither teen spoke. They continued to sit in silence, each having their own thoughts to think about.

Teito straightened himself, a solemn look on his face.

"I don't think Frau likes me back," he finally voiced the thought that had been nagging him since the awkward kiss they had a week ago.

"He told you?" Hakuren watched the brunet from the corner of his eye.

"No, but it's obvious. He's always running away…"

"Maybe he's just confused, Teito. After all, both of you are dense." Teito glared down at his hands at the remark from Hakuren. "Or, there's always the other thing. It is Bishop Frau we're talking about."

Frau, the womanizer. Teito nodded; his only ray of light that he wasn't a complete joke to the priest was that Frau was just confused about liking him as he was confused by the whole situation.

"Why don't you take the chance and ask him yourself?"

Taken aback, Teito turned to Hakuren, still not believing his ears.

"Me? Go ask him? Are you insane?"

The blond sighed while he rested his head on his propped hand, elbow on his knee. "Maybe I am, but not as insane as you will be if you refuse to confront Bishop Frau. You've been in our room since the day you came back from your little trip, only coming out for chores and practice. Have you even eaten anything today? Go find Bishop Frau and confront him."

"But he's just going to ignore me! Or change the subject! Or better yet, run for it like he's been doing recently!"

"Well tackle him down and make him listen!" Hakuren turned to meet Teito's stare.

The brunet blinked stupidly towards the blond, unsure if they were even talking about the same person anymore.

"…have you seen me and Frau together in the same room? How can I knock him down!?"

"Well with that attitude, no wonder you haven't accomplished anything." Hakuren stood to his feet, taking the liberty of dusting his white robes though it was obviously unnecessary. He fixed his appearance as much as he could, his usual facial features back to normal. "If you really want something, _can't_ is never an option one settles for. Go find him, and stop him with whatever means necessary. I've never pegged you as one to give up, Teito Klein." Hakuren smirked in Teito's direction before leaving the brunet alone with his thoughts.

Teito sat in silence, mulling over thoughts that still made no sense to him. How would he find Frau? Better yet, how would he make Frau listen?

- - -

Teito soon made his way back to the spring festival, his stomach roared as soon as the smell of baked goods hit his all-too-sensitive nose. With his mouth watering in anticipation, Teito followed his nose into the buzzing crowd. Food first, Frau later. He bought a sweet dumpling from the closest food vendor he could find and soon began to wander the festival grounds, eyes kept open for the large blond bishop.

Now that a burden was lifted from his shoulders, the sights, sounds and smells of the festival warmed him slightly as he continued to wander. The laughter, the warm feeling everyone was sharing, it made him want to find the bishop all the quicker so they could experience this together. _'I like Frau.'_ The realization was still surprising if not a bit scary, but Teito was going to accept it, not deny it.

Through the crowd, Teito spotted a familiar face. He slinked through the crowd, once within ear shot, he shouted to the man.

"Castor-san!"

Startled, the rusty brunet turned to find the small teen rushing up to him. After allowing him a moment to catch his breath, Castor smiled down at the brunet.

"Hello, Teito-kun. How are you're injuries? I'm sorry I haven't been able to see you since you came back. Festivities have kept me busy…"

"Oh, don't worry about that, Castor-san, I'm all better now. Um, actually, Castor-san? There was something I wanted to ask."

"Hm?" The doll-maker raised a brow.

"Um, I wanted to know if, if you know where I might find Frau. There's something I need to ask him." Teito did his best to control the blood flow to his face, repeatedly telling himself to calm down.

The rusty-haired bishop remained silent for a moment, eyes kept on Teito. The sound of the crowd around them seemed nothing more than an annoying buzz. Castor slowly placed his arms behind his back, clenching his fists tightly while he continued to smile down at the teen.

"I'm afraid I do not know where he is at the moment, Teito-kun." Castor allowed the teen no time to respond as he continued. "What did you want to ask him? Perhaps I can pass on the message."

"Um," Teito shifted nervously from foot to foot, "No…no. It's a bit personal. I'll, I'll rather tell him myself. Thank you anyway, Castor-san."

Feeling a little foolish, Teito made quick haste to leave the bishops side, waving back as he pushed himself through the crowd.

"Teito-kun!"

"Hm?" Teito looked back at the doll-maker, stopping abruptly in the mist of the crowd. People passed through them, not noticing the conversation that was still taking place. At odd times, between the passings of people, Teito could have sworn he saw Castor looking troubled, if not angry.

"What, what you think you know," Castor shouted over the crowd, no one paid them the slightest attention, "is just that, what you _think_ you know."

Teito stared stupidly at the bishop; the words rang loudly in his ears. Did Castor know about what he was feeling toward Frau? Before he could open his mouth to question, a pair of arms wrapped suddenly around his neck. He turned, startled, to catch sight of a fellow bishop novice though he couldn't quite place the boy's name.

"Teito-chaaaaaaan! Been looking for you! I need your help with winning this prize."

Easily ignoring the other, Teito turned back towards Castor to find the man had drifted away into the crowd. He frowned; eyes kept to the last place he saw the bishop. _'What I think I know is just that?'_

"Teito, you gonna help me or not?"

Distinctly remembering the boy was someone Hakuren had introduced him too, he replied yes and allowed himself to be lead away though his mind still stayed in one place.

They soon arrived at a gaming booth, a crowd of teens all around. The crowd parted as soon as Teito was spotted, showing him and the black haired boy that lead him there forward. Teito cast a weary eye around, he was not used to being around so many people, his age, at one time, not since his days at the Academy. The sole teen that did not part was the one playing at the booth at the moment. He was big in both height and width. The boy cursed loudly, causing a Sister nearby to flinch. Teito frowned; this boy obviously did not belong to the church. Teito's own vocabulary was not something to be proud of, but he was considerate enough not to curse in front of the Sisters.

"Hey! You lose, you get out, kid! Give someone else a try!" The boy that had brought Teito shouted.

"Pfft. What makes you think you can do better this time?" The boy replied with a gruff voice.

"I'm not gonna play, Teito is."

At that, the big male turned towards the two. The first thought that passed through Teito's head was that this male resembled some of the prisoners he had seen in the military jail. The male was built thick, with both muscle and a bit of fat. His neck had disappeared somewhere underneath his chin, giving him the look of a walrus. He had unruly black hair and dirt brown eyes. Teito disliked the fact that he had to look up at him; from the boy's appearance alone, Teito could tell that the other was used to using intimidation as a means of manipulation.

"This shrimp?" the boy laughed, his cheeks turning pink with the action alone. "Does he even know how to use zaiphon?"

Teito looked around the larger male, catching sight of the game that was being played by most of the teens around. It looked simple enough; the entire backboard of the booth was covered with targets ranging in all different sizes, some moving and shifting from their locations.

Without bothering to be polite with the male, Teito pushed his way past him and placed himself in front. The man running the booth smiled apologetically, he too was growing tired of the boy and wished for someone to put him in his place.

"What do I need to do?" Teito asked with a placid tone.

"Well, there're thirty-five targets: ten shift around and five disappear and reappear randomly. You are given fifteen seconds to find all the targets and zap 'em with your zaiphon. The more targets you get, the better the prize."

"Sounds simple enough." Teito raised his finger, one eye squinting, just like a child would do if they were playing cops and robbers.

"On my mark, kiddo. Ready…?"

"Shrimp'll be lucky if he hits ten, I got up to twenty" the walrus-boy huffed behind him but Teito easily pushed him out of his mind.

"Go!"

With lightning speed, Teito managed to take out the twenty still targets in only five seconds. It appeared as if tiny sparks flew out of his finger, each target giving a small pop before disintegrating. Teito had seven seconds remaining and he managed to get rid of nine of the moving targets. The group around him soon began chanting the seconds away. _Five_…Teito shot down the last moving target and one that had suddenly appeared beside it. _Four_…Teito's emerald eyes shifted throughout the board, unable to spot the quick targets. _Three_…he spotted one practically flying out of the booth, _zap_! _Two_…eyes darted throughout the entire board, nothing appeared. _One_…nothing still. _Zero_!!

With a sigh, Teito relaxed the tension he didn't know was building within him. The man within the booth gave a low whistle as he counted up the score.

"Wow kid, you're good at this. You only missed three."

Teito turned his head around to see what the boy might say about him now but found only smiling faces, the boy had disappeared. The remaining rowdy teens soon congratulated and praised him; the brunet could not help but grin slightly at his accomplishment.

"So what do you want kid?" The booth owner called out to him.

Teito turned back and observed the prizes that stood neatly in a row on the ground in front of the backboard. He was allowed to get anything except the last prize, if he had received a perfect score, he would have been able to win a plush Zehel. Heat crawled up Teito's cheeks as he stared at the tiny plush reaper; a smile was stitched on its face.

"What do you want to get, Teito-kun?"

Teito looked up to find kind hazel eyes smiling at him. With the blush still on his face, not to mention the lost look in his eyes, the girl beside him began to giggle, her blond curls bouncing elegantly.

"Um," Teito turned back to the prizes, his eyes fixating on the ghost plushie. He turned back to the girl. "You can pick it out," he asked innocently. If the booth owner saw him give away his prize, perhaps he would give him another chance to play.

The girl turned a soft pink color, oblivious to Teito's true intentions. She looked to the prizes and pointed out a pink bunny, third in the line of five prizes. The booth owner smiled and handed over the plush rabbit to the young girl, who was now turning a bright red as she hid behind it.

"Look at you, Teito!" The boy that brought him there placed a friendly arm around his shoulder; Teito was beginning to feel guilty about not knowing the boy's name. "I was gonna win a girl a prize too but I couldn't get past the twenty, well, that's why I brought you but you obviously had plans of your own. You can only give a girl a bag of candy so many times before they start thinking you're cheap."

Once again, Teito ignored the boy and turned back to the booth owner.

"Can I play again?" He asked. The man grinned, flashing his teeth.

"Sure kid, just once more, I don't want you cleaning me out so early in the day."

"Are you going to win a stuffed animal for another girl?"

Teito turned to the girl he had allowed to pick the prize; she still hid herself behind the stuffed animal, though her eyes peeked out between two floppy ears.

"No," he replied simply, turning back to play once more.

- - -

The sun was soon setting over the horizon; the crowd soon began to thin out as darkness approached. The younger generation, many teens, stayed behind for the Dusk Dance, something Teito was not very interested in, though he was invited to attend by that odd girl at the booth.

He passed through the closing booths, most packing up for the day; the weight of his prize in his hand causing a smile to overcome his placid features every now and again. The second time around, it had been much easier to win. He first focused on the disappearing targets, catching them all before they had a third time to vanish. The rest were easily managed. He held up the chibi ghost towards the setting sun, it took everything in him not to break out in a grin.

"Teito-kun?"

The brunet looked down from his prize to catch sight of the gardening bishop with a jar in hand. Quickly realizing that he was caught playing with a toy; Teito brought the plushie down and hid it behind him.

"L-Labrador-san?" Teito stuttered, a blush reforming on his cheeks.

"Did you win that in one of the games?" Labrador smiled kindly, pretending to be oblivious to Teito's coloration.

"Y-yeah," the russet replied. He watched as the bishop began to juggle four jars in his hands. "Labrador-san, can I help?"

The violet-haired man gave a soft sigh, placing all four jars on the ground before he dropped them. "That would be most helpful, Teito-kun. Another young boy had promised to help me but he must have gotten preoccupied somewhere else."

Teito advanced forward, noticing his dilemma in an instant. He would need both hands for the large jars. With a small shrug, he slipped the plush into his robes; the ghost's white face peered out to the world over Teito's collar. With both hands free, he took each jar under his arms and followed after Labrador.

"Did you have fun, Teito-kun?" Labrador asked as they made their way through the darkening hallways.

"Well, it was eventful," Teito admitted. Fun was not the word he would have used to describe his day, but he didn't want to lie to Labrador either. Though the bishop might believe him, it just felt wrong to lie to him. He was too nice to be lied to.

"We always have trouble trying to find activities the adolescents can find amusing," the bishop continued with the small talk.

"The games were fun; I saw a lot of the bishop novices playing them."

Labrador turned and smiled down at Teito, he did his best to return it. After another moment's walk, they arrived to a closet storage, where they neatly put away the jars.

"What was in those jars, Labrador-san?" Teito asked as the bishop closed the door to the closet.

"Oh, just candy for the little ones. They went out quickly; at least today was the last day of the morning festivities."

"What's in store tomorrow then?" Teito pulled out his prize from his robes and held it instead as they began to walk the way they came.

"I believe a bon fire, I'm not too certain, but I think I overheard a few of the festival administrators speak of fireworks."

"Um, Labrador-san? C-can I ask you something?"

A mild look of surprise appeared on the gardener's features as he turned to the boy. "Of course, Teito-kun, what is it?"

As he stared down at the chibi ghost, he was soon reminded of his mission. "Um, do you…happen to know where Frau's at?"

A sad smile replaced Labrador's mild surprise. "You have not seen him since your return?"

Teito shook his head, his throat suddenly closing as he continued to stare down at the stitched smile.

"That's certainly odd. The only moments I have caught sight of him would be either at service or out doing his chores. The rest of the time, I thought he might have been with you."

Teito shook his head in reply.

"Well, Teito-kun," the gentle bishop placed a hand on Teito's shoulder, gaining his attention, "I do believe I last saw Frau heading for the Bell Tower, perhaps he is still there. I would run if I was you, he might get away again." He gave Teito an encouraging smile, squeezing his shoulder lightly. Teito nodded and soon took off, leaving Labrador alone in the near dark hallway. "Teito-kun…you've finally realized, have you not?"

- - -

Sapphire hues gazed out to the disappearing sun, the powerful colors swirling with the intimidating darkness. Tiny twinkling lights brightened the night sky, similar lights below began to flick on as the sun soon disappeared over the horizon.

Shadows soon engulfed the tower in which Frau had taken shelter in; the giant golden bell beside him soon began to gong. He winced, realizing that perhaps it had not been a good hiding place after all. As soon as the bell stopped, another sound, faint, reached his ears. He looked down to the scene below. Music soon began to play. He shook his head, for a second, he had thought someone was pounding up the tower's steps. Feeling exhausted all of a sudden, Frau sat himself on the low brick railing of the tower's open windows. He rested his back on the brick pillar, a foot hanging out of the window. The bishop still couldn't believe he had stayed in the steeple for the entire day, not even bothering to change into his bishop robes.

As the music began to grow a bit louder, the blond let himself relax even more, eyes soon closed. His hand began to play with something in his pocket as he hummed along with the music.

From the other side of the door, Teito peered into the room, eyes on the blond. His chest constricted tightly. Frau looked so powerful, though he was obviously lounging peacefully, like a lion. His golden hair did not diminish slightly in the dull light, instead caught every dull ray of the moon, glittering silver here and there. Frau was handsome, Teito realized. His face was strong, chiseled though still held on odd warmth. It was surprising to notice that the man had long, thick eyelashes; and Frau's figure looked powerful yet almost graceful. The sudden urge of wanting to be held was overpowering Teito. With a defeated sigh, Teito sank to the ground, turning his back to the door as he stared down to his ghost plushie. Of all times to scared, it had to be now. He just couldn't face Frau in the end. After everything, he was simply just going to give up.

The door behind Teito suddenly swung inward. He turned, half-frightened, to catch his emerald with sapphire hues.

"I thought I heard something," the blond spoke to no one in particular.

A relief swept over the teen at just hearing the older man's voice, something prickled his eyes.

"Kid…" Frau stared down at Teito; tears began pouring out of his forest green eyes.

Realizing his own embarrassing actions, Teito looked away from the bishop, running his sleeve over his eyes. How could one person control his emotions so easily? Not to mention, the most embarrassing one of them all. "I'm sorry," he whispered. After forcing in a ragged breath, the teen somehow managed to control himself. "I'm sorry for always bothering you, for always getting in the way," his eyes drifted down to his ghost, "but…I'm not sorry for how I make you feel," the teen turned to look up at the older male, "I'm sorry for everything but that."

A tinge of red filled the bishop's usually pale features. His hand gripped the door a bit more tightly.

Seconds ticked by as neither spoke, the music in the background kept things from growing too silent. They continued to stare; neither moved, neither did anything. After realizing that the blond was not going to respond, Teito pushed himself to his feet, feeling tired all of a sudden. He looked up at Frau, his mind completely blank. Without knowing of anything better to do to break the silence, Teito raised his toy near Frau's cheek, tilting his own head to the side slightly.

"I can certainly see the resemblance."

Frau turned his head down, a small chuckle rumbled in his throat. He turned his head towards the toy, reaching up and taking it into his free hand. Teito's fingers slipped from it as he watched Frau stare at the plushie, a small smile appearing on the man's face.

"I think I'm better lookin' though." As soon as the sentence was said, the smile quickly disappeared from Frau's face. "You won this down at the festival, huh?"

Teito nodded, though noticed that Frau didn't look up to him so instead voiced his reply. He did not like the frown that had overcome Frau's features.

"You looked like you were having fun down there…"

"You saw me?"

"Yah, I saw you." Frau saw how happy the teen looked as he mingled with kids his own age. He saw how he gave that girl a stuffed animal, how red they both looked. Even from his high tower, Frau saw it.

"Frau, look at me." The teen whispered, as if speaking out loud might break something.

The blond frowned instead as he continued to stare at the tiny plush figure. Why did Teito decide to keep this thing?

"Frau, please."

Reluctantly, he looked to the teen; a pained look immediately crossed his features. Without a second thought, Frau took Teito into his arms, burying his face into that chocolate hair he had missed so much.

"…It hurts me when you cry, damn brat," Frau forced himself to say through a closing throat.

"Then I'll just cry more, stupid! Make sure you know how I feel!" Teito wrapped his own tiny arms around the larger body, gripping tightly to the bishop's shirt, never wanting to let go.

"Why are you crying?" He held the smaller body tighter, his back soon began to protest against the awkward position it was in.

"You've been ignoring me for a whole week now! It's not my fault I can't keep my damn emotions in check when it involves you!"

With a simple pull, Frau closed the door behind Teito, soon shoving his own back against the closed door and allowing himself to slide down so he was sitting on the floor. Teito looked down at him with a scowl though the corner of his eyes still held water. Frau opened his arms, and without needing a verbal invitation, Teito threw himself onto the bishop, who enclosed him in his arms as soon as the small body fell onto his chest. They shifted awkwardly for only a moment, but easily found a comfortable position for both. Teito was snuggled in between Frau's outstretched legs, his back against the blond's chest while strong arms wrapped around him.

The following silence was a comfortable one; Teito could have easily fallen asleep like this. The cold didn't matter, he would get used to it if he had to.

"…kid?"

"Hm?" Teito's eyelids began to grow heavy as the night stretched on.

"…I've missed you."

With a smile overcoming his lips, Teito hugged Frau's arm, his head tilting off to the side as the music drifting from the ground below cradled him to sleep. "Let me sleep with you tonight, Frau," he managed to say before his eyelids drooped and fatigue swept over him.

- - -

The room was absolutely quiet except for the sound of a pen scratching against a piece of parchment. The room was large in size, spacious; an entire wall was composed of glass while the rest were a solid deep maroon color. The see-through wall allowed the lunar light to shine through, causing everything to be shrouded in shadow. A large wooden desk sat near the end of the area, a man sat at the desk, head hunched over as he continued to scribble on the piece of paper. Behind the man and the desk, displayed proudly on the wall, was the mark of the military, a serpent emblem.

A knock sounded loudly through the quiet room, a menacing growl emerged from a beast that lay peacefully at a side of the desk. It raised its head toward the annoyance, baring sharp, pointed teeth.

"Come in," voiced the man.

The door squeaked open, a small figure stood in the lit doorway. As soon as it stepped inside, the door closed behind it; the space was dark once more. Taking cautious steps, the figure approached the man behind the desk. The beast soon rose to its four paws and began to encircle the intruder though never passed in front of them.

"Kuroyuri, I have a mission for you." The man stopped writing and soon folded the parchment he was working on, tying it in a bright red ribbon before presenting it to the petite figure.

Hesitant, but only for a millisecond, the figure took the note and stowed it away in their coat, immediately straightening to await extra orders.

"The letter, it is to be sent to Teito Klein. Do I need to remind you not to cause trouble, Kuroyuri?" The voice was cold, distant.

"Of course not, Ayanami-sama." With a bow, the figure hurried out of the room.

Only a moment later did it take for the door to reopen, a larger figure stood in the light. "Aya-tan~ you called?"

With confident strides, the new comer approached the Chief of Staff. With a smile on his face and a lollipop in his mouth, Hyuuga sat himself on the chair in front of the large desk, no where near intimidated by the power that radiated off the man before him.

"I wanted report on that last assignment we were given."

"Ah, don't worry your pretty little head over it, Aya-tan. I have Konatsu-kun working on it."

"You have much trust in your Begleiter, Hyuuga."

"As much trust as I have in you, Aya-tan." The man paused; his obscured eyes watched the other for a moment. Though his darkened glasses caused the little light that came into the dark room to almost disappear, a smile, and not a kind one at that, was evenly placed on Ayanami's features. A shiver ran down the swordsman's spine though he didn't visibly show it. "Is there anything else you need, Aya-tan?"

"Odd that you wish to leave before I force you out, Hyuuga…"

"Ah, I wish I could stay longer, I really do. But Konatsu-kun is coming this way and I'm afraid I much don't feel like working on boring paper work just yet…"

"Well, off with you then."

"Good night, Aya-tan, sweet dreams." The black-haired male stood to his feet, bowed his head and turned to leave, his weapon bounced softly against his leg.

And once again, the room was still and quiet except for the loud purring of a jungle cat.

* * *

**Foreshadowing!!**

**God, I love that word.**

DUM DUM DUM DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUM.

I like Hyuuga, he sounds cute.

Oh, um, I don't watch the anime of Ghost, I read so the characters looks might differ than what your used to. I'll try to look them up but if I get their looks wrong, I'm sorry .__.

And Kuroyuri will be referred to as 'it'. It sounds mean, I know, but I can't think of anything else. The characters might refer to...Kuroyuri as he/she. Imma have fun with that :D


	10. BitterSweet Desire

**I have bad news, but I'll tell you what it is after you read :)**

**Mucho drama going on, just a warning.**

* * *

The still hallway echoed with the soft padding of hurried steps. Everything around had finally gone to sleep, the late dancers were secure in their rooms, oblivious to the turmoil that was partaking.

Labrador hurried himself through the corridors, muttering the location he must arrive before something terrible happened. His pristine white bishop robes fluttered behind him as he rounded corners, the need to run mounting as his destination seemed to get farther and farther away. He was well within the Church's dormitories; he whispered each room number as he passed them by. The number he needed was fast approaching, he soon broke out into a run. His steps echoed loudly against the dim, dark walls; he sweated slightly though not from fatigue.

He soon reached his destination, composing himself before opening the door just a crack. No protest, nothing greeted him as the bishop led himself into the room, sliding through a barely open door. He allowed the door to click closed behind him as he observed the tiny room. There were two beds, only one of which was occupied. The figure continued to sleep, unaware of the lilac eyes that watched. Alert that he was limited on time, Labrador made quick haste towards the vacant bed, keeping his possibly loud footsteps in check. The bed looked neat, obviously undisturbed.

Labrador's first assumption proved to be correct. As his hand slipped under the pillow for anything that should not be there, his fingers grazed something tough, stiff. He grasped it quickly and pulled it out. Assured that his actions had not awakened the sleeping body near him, the bishop looked down at the paper, flipping it. There was only a candle to light the room; it was placed on a small table between two desks, which were placed between the two beds. Hunching down, Labrador read the small, neat, cursive writing on the piece of paper: _Teito Klein._

A shiver ran down the bishop's spine at the writing alone. It was obvious that the writer was confident in themselves; the tails of the letters were thick and elongated, as if a small amount of anger was put into them. Without putting it off much longer, Labrador ripped the red ribbon off the letter, sitting himself on the desk's chair as his eyes shifted through the writing, his eyes growing wider with each stanza he read. He folded the letter suddenly, eyes jumping to the presence in front. A yawn escaped from the sleeping form and soon eased once more, a tail of blond hair stuck out from under the covers.

Not wanting to be discovered, Labrador made quick haste out of the occupied room, easing the door in place before sprinting down the quiet halls.

- - -

Frau let out a heavy breath, the semi-warm air turning to a white puff in front of him before disappearing. He rubbed his right arm vigorously, the pain not subsiding in the least. This night could easily have been the most perfect and most disastrous night of Frau's life.

The brat had ended up falling asleep in his arms, and being in an open window tower, Frau knew the kid wouldn't last long before he caught some illness or another, so he ended up carrying the boy's dead carcass all the way to his room. And upon arriving, the brunet decided to wake up. Frustrated, Frau had thrown the boy onto his bed without bothering to be kind about it; the boy had always been so easy to annoy…

"_What the hell?! I'm not some rag doll you can throw around however you feel like!" Though he began to take off his shoes and socks._

_At that, Frau threw Teito his plush Zehel Ghost, earning a blush from the teen. The blond laughed as he stripped away his shirt, amusing himself a bit too much at the boy's embarrassment which only increased as soon as the bishop's shirt came off completely._

_Teito had turned a dark crimson, eyes purposefully away from the larger male. This only increased his amusement; Frau wanted to see how red the teen could really get. Deliberately taking his time, Frau unbuckled his belt, pulling it through each loop on his pants. He caught Teito's eyes flash towards him every time his buckle clinked. _

"_Like what you see?" He teased; the boy flashed him a death glare though he was so red that Frau wondered if he had blood anywhere else in his body_

"_How much are you planning to take off?" The teen had huffed, eyes unable to stay put in one place, shifting to and away Frau._

"_How much do you _want_ me to take off?" The grin never left Frau's face._

"_You fucken jerk!" Teito threw the blankets over his head, keeping his back towards the blond._

_Frau bellowed out in laughter, quickly taking off his pants to replace them with sleeping bottoms. It didn't make sense to him though, he still wore a shirt underneath, sure it was tight and sleeveless but it wasn't like he was naked or anything._

"_You're such a girl. I was only going to change into something more comfortable. You should do the same."_

_Teito looked up from his hiding place, noticing Frau was still dressed and stripped off his own shirt post-haste, hiding himself under the covers once more._

"_Pants come off, they'll make you itchy in your sleep," Frau demanded as he strode over to his bed, pulling the blankets off the startled teen. Without asking for permission, he forced the slacks off the teen, earning a few scratches and many foul words from the teen. As he threw the pants aside, flung the covers back on the teen and seated himself on the bed; Teito would just have to sleep in his boxers, his own fault for not bringing something to sleep in._

_The teen looked from over the blankets and towards the bishop, his face was still red. He looked like a scared rabbit._

"_I'm not going to do anything, kid, calm down. Just lie back down."_

_Teito followed as instructed, eyes still peeking from over the blanket._

_Frau stood to his feet and went back to the place where he threw away his pants. He picked them up off the ground and rummaged through the pockets, finding what he was looking for and made his way back towards the bed. With one leg still hanging over the side, he sat himself down, eyes on his hands. Curious, Teito pushed down the blankets and followed Frau's gaze, his voice caught in his throat._

_Hesitantly, Frau unclasped the long forgotten bell collar; its bell burned a deep scarlet. He reached out to Teito and placed the oddity around the boy's wrist; its color swirled for a moment but soon remained the same red. Teito gazed at it stupidly, unsure of what to say. Frau, however, knew what he was going to do. He leaned towards the brunet and slowly lined kisses down from his wrist to his elbow. He reached forward but watched as Teito fell onto the bed, startled green eyes watched him. He, however, would not be scared off that easily. He followed Teito down, his other hand next to Teito to keep him propped up, hovering over him. Those eyes never strayed from him, those scared eyes pushed him forward._

"_You're not used to this, are you?"_

_Teito didn't respond, instead he forced down something stuck in his throat, probably his response._

"…_I can show you," Frau whispered, placing his head on Teito's bare shoulder. The teen shuddered against him. The blond inhaled, intoxicated by his scent alone. He felt prone to do something stupid. But before he could do anything, the teen spoke his name, fear riddled the single syllable word._

_After letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding, Frau released the male, placing the blanket over him before placing his arm over the smaller male's waist. The blond laid on his stomach as his sapphire hues watched the red teen who was still breathing deeply._

"_Damn. I didn't do anything to you and you're already loosing it."_

_Furious, Teito turned his head to yell at the bishop but his words soon caught in his throat, he relaxed into the pillow. The two continued to stare at each other. The pillow he was resting on obscured the smile on the bishop's face but something told him that the brat knew what he was hiding._

_Teito shifted slightly, laying on his side to better face Frau, better snuggle against him, the bell ringed merrily._

"_You kept it?" He asked quietly, as if speaking out loud would disrupt the magic in the air._

"_It seemed important, and this way, when I lose you, I can always find you," Frau paused for a moment, drinking in the teen's tender face; something he knew was a true rarity. "Think of it as our new promise collar."_

_Teito hit the tiny bell, it rang sweetly. "That's so cheesy."_

"_But it got a smile on your face. That's all that matters."_

_Emerald met sapphire for a moment before Teito buried his head into the nook of Frau's neck. The blond turned awkwardly for a moment, wrapping Teito in the blanket, before turning on his side to hold the teen tightly._

"_You're going to go sleep in there after I fall asleep, aren't you?" Teito spoke after a long moment of silence._

"_I sleep better in there, you'll get cold with me here...you can wake me up early in the morning if you want me to lie next to you until we both have to get up."_

"…_just make sure you stay next to me until I fall asleep, okay?"_

_And that is exactly what Frau did, only he began to push his luck as he refused to leave the teen's side. Ten minutes after Teito had fallen asleep Frau told himself another ten, just to be certain. After those ten minutes, another twenty was added; this continued until, of course, fate disrupted his happiness. His right arm burned intensely, twitching from its spot underneath the sleeping male. Seeing no other option, Frau pulled himself away from Teito, who slept perfectly at ease. A pained smile had crossed the bishop's features before he took off into the cold night air._

As he sat there, on the temple steps, he couldn't help but think that that situation with Teito had happened long, long ago. In a time and place where he wasn't a ghost, and nothing and no one separated them.

After a good hour in the cold night, he soon gained control of his arm, though now it ached rather than burned, as if he pulled some muscle. Before he could even begin to wallow in self-pity, a voice drifted to him through the still air.

"How stupid are you, really?"

"Mind your own damn business, Castor," Frau growled, his hand practically crushing his right arm. He quickly let go and allowed the blood to flow once more, now it felt numb and it still hurt.

"Why are you doing this?"

"Doing what," the blond spat, refusing to look up at the man.

"Hurting yourself, hurting Teito."

"It's not like I'm doing it on purpose!" Frau ran both his hands through his bed-hair, keeping them there as he placed his elbows on his knees.

"And you couldn't just, I don't know, not show the boy how you feel about him?"

"I tried," Frau forced himself to say, "but I'm fucken selfish. Is that what you want to hear?"

"No! What I want to hear is that you're going to set this right! You are going to make Teito forget any of this ever happened and let him live a normal life!"

"The kid is far from having a normal life now!" Frau looked up to glare at the doll-maker. He was dressed in his sleepwear too. "He was far from having a normal life before I started adding my own. His best friend was turned into some mutated Kor, and then he came back as a stupid pink rabbit! And the man responsible for making his best friend into a stupid pink rabbit? Oh yah, it was the same man that killed his Uncle, not to mention the one that has tried to kill him multiple times already. After all that, he learns that he's the keeper of the Eye of Mikhail AND the keeper of Pandora's Box. Oh and here's the best part, he turns out to be the lost Prince of Raggs! The kid is far from having, what you call, a 'normal life'!" Frau quoted the air.

Castor was taken aback, frustration clear on his face. "We could have protected him from all that!"

"The kid doesn't want protecting! He wants to know the truth and he deserves it after all that's happen to him!" Frau pushed himself to stand, his pain soon lost to his fury. He looked down at Castor from an even greater height now, the other on the bottom step while he was closer to the top. "And why are you so bent out of shape because of me and Teito?! Is it just because we're both guys?"

"No!" Castor answered in a disgusted voice, as if appalled by the accusation.

"Is it because I'm older than him?"

"No, of course not!"

"Because I'm a bishop? You, of all people, should know I don't give a shit about that!"

"I know! I know!"

"Then what is the problem?!"

"It won't work!"

Frau refrained from retaliating. Something began to click in place.

"Is this all because…of you and Razette?"

Castor didn't respond though looked as if Frau had struck him.

"If you love her, then just be with her." Even if Frau was an idiot, Castor was the bigger idiot for not realizing that it was plain to see the connection between the mermaid and ghost.

"It is not that simple, Frau."

"Is it because she's a mermaid?"

"No, of course not."

"Then what?" Frau lowered his voice, sympathetic eyes towards Castor.

"…Because of what I am, Frau. Because of what we all are," Castor looked away from the blond, unable to control his usually happy features, "I told you once, and I'll tell you again. The boy will not be able to accept us fully. We should have erased his memory long ago, protected him from afar but you…you had to turn around on your own word; you became attached to him. How could…anyone ever love things like us?"

"…Razette easily could. And you're the one making her suffer by acting indifferently and cold towards her. I will not be the reason for Teito's suffering, if anything, I will make sure nothing ever happens to him again. I promised him, didn't I? That I would protect him until he could protect himself. I'll use this curse for something better; there is a reason for my existence now, do not take it away from me."

"What about your other curse, Frau? Verloren's scythe is rejecting you as its master. Will you really allow yourself so close to the one thing it will not hesitate to devour?"

Cold blue eyes stared down at the other. "I'm fucken better than that stupid piece of shit scythe. Don't underestimate me."

Castor let out a breath, his hand running through his rusty hair. "You're too proud. How I could ever think I could persuade you other wise…"

"Damn right."

"Frau, are you truly sincere about –?"

"Castor-san!" Both males turned to the new voice; a figure approached them running, immediately stopping beside Castor. Labrador took in a deep breath; his sprint took more out of him than what he thought possible. "Castor, I need to speak with you," he whispered, "privately."

"Oh, keeping secrets from me now?" Frau glared at the two bishops.

"It's not like that Frau!" Labrador quickly answered.

"Can we please move to a more private location? You too Frau," Castor added when noticing the blond's fuming expression.

The gardener and doll-maker lead the way towards Castor's room; Labrador had to rush himself to keep up with the taller man beside him. Casting a weary eye towards Frau, who remained a good way behind them, Castor turned to Labrador.

"What is it?"

"It's, it's about Teito-kun," Labrador whispered as softly as he could. "Frau must not know; why did you invite him along?"

"He's going to get suspicious, we need him trusting us if we plan on keeping an eye on him." It had happened before; Frau had disappeared for days on end when he had accused Castor and Labrador of plotting against him for some idiotic reason that the rusty russet could no longer remember. "Now what about Teito?"

They soon reached Castor's room as Labrador presented the letter to the doll-maker. Without bothering to be polite about it, Frau snatched the passing letter, forcing his way into the room. He flipped the note in his hands before opening it, finding it odd that they would steal a note from the brat.

"Frau, you must understand that this-!" Labrador began as he rushed in after Frau.

"What is this?" Frau paused, turning towards the two males that stood in the entranceway, his sight still on the letter as he scanned through it. "What in the hell…is this?" He looked up to Castor, who gave him a stern look; Frau had stolen the note from him to begin with. Easily ignoring the doll-maker, Frau turned to Labrador who appeared to be frightened of something. "What is this?!"

"It's…" Labrador began to say but was immediately cut off.

" '_My dearest child;'_ "Frau began, reading straight from the note, " _'I do hope you have enjoyed your vacation away from the Academy, but as all things must come to an end, your little fantasy must end as well. Pack your bags, Teito Klein, your requested leave has expired. If you honestly expected to stay permanently within the grounds of the 7__th__ District, you were sadly mistaken. You belong to the Basburg Empire Military Academy; more specifically, you belong to me. And if the thought occurs to you not to return, I will personally ensure that you watch as the Basburg Church falls to rubble around you. Now do not even consider running away as another possibility, Teito-kun. Run from me and I will hunt you down, better yet, I will hunt down and slaughter anyone who is remotely important to you. Perhaps I could start with that blond bishop you have an unhealthy attachment to...'_ " Frau's voice drifted off as he read, his hands gripped the thick paper tightly, it was a miracle the parchment did not rip. "_'Do not make me wait any longer, Teito-kun, I am a very impatient man. Chief of Staff, Ayanami'_."

A chilling cold sunk deep into the blond bishop's bones as he stared at the cursive writing, more so on the signature at the end. Immediately, he crumpled the parchment into a tight ball, throwing it somewhere behind him as he stalked towards the door; Castor jumped in front of him.

"Frau, calm down."

"C-calm down?" the blond began to laugh hysterically, running a shaky hand through his hair. "That man just…he just threatened the life of everyone in this church, he's asking Teito to go back to him as if he _gave_ him permission to leave and you want _me_ to calm down? That's funny, that's real funny, Castor."

"I cannot let you leave until you've calmed down." The doll-maker stood his ground, glaring brown eyes on the blond.

"Where'd you get the note, Lab?" Frau turned to him, an innocent puzzled look on his face.

Lilac eyes shifted from Frau to Castor; sensing no reinforcement from Castor, the violet haired bishop spoke slowly and softly. "I found the note in…Teito-kun's room, under his pillow." Immediately, he regretted saying the latter.

"Under…under his pillow? Hmm…"

Frau took hold of Castor's shoulder, ready to throw the bishop aside but underestimated the glasses-wearing male. With swift movements, Castor knocked Frau's hand off his shoulder, taking that same hand and pinned it to the blond's back. He pulled up as Frau resisted, slamming him against the closed door.

"Castor! You're going to break his arm!"

"I'll break both his legs if he dares try to exit this room."

"Let me go, stupid four-eyes!" Frau grunted. He very much disliked smelling the wood door so up close.

"You listen, and you listen well, Frau. This is why we keep things from you. You are too quick to jump into action. You're going to get yourself, and anyone who tries to assist you, killed!"

"He was on the church grounds! He was in the kid's room! He was so damn close as to leave something under his fucken pillow! What if the stupid brat had been in his own bed like he was suppose to?! What then!"

"Ayanami would not come into the church grounds if he could avoid it, it was possibly someone under him who deliv-."

"It doesn't matter! One of his damn lackeys still managed to get inside, do _not_ tell me to calm down!"

"What do you plan to do then!? Take him on?! That man…that man is not right. He knows about us, he knows about you and that scythe. This could easily be a trap, one which involves you dead and the scythe in his hands."

"I don't care about the stupid scythe."

Frau pushed himself off the door with his free hand, finally catching the doll-maker off guard. Both fell to the floor, Frau landing, more or less, on Castor. Cursing loudly, Frau tried to stand to his feet, but was immediately pushed to the ground by Labrador, who placed a knee to his chest, taking both hold of both his wrists and pinned them over his blond head. The usually calm bishop pressed down on Frau's chest, earning a strangled sound from him.

"I cannot let you do something idiotic, Frau. If you die due to some futile fit of fury, who will help protect the people within this church? Teito-kun included."

Frau forced himself to relax; Labrador always seemed to make the most sense in trialing times.

"Can you at least get him off my leg? It's falling asleep."

"I'm sorry, Castor-san, but I very much would not like to release Frau until I am certain he is stable enough to think properly."

"I'm okay, I'm okay," Frau closed his eyes, mind finally catching up.

Slowly, Labrador removed himself from Frau, who was finally light enough for Castor to pull his leg out from under. The blond remained on the floor; the world above him seemed to move too quickly.

"So what should we do? We certainly can't give up Teito-kun but if Ayanami comes here…" Castor looked to the only reasonably sane person in the room. "Labrador?"

"Our only hope is to disrupt Ayanami's plans and perhaps postpone them until we can find a more effective way of ending this. If we fail to do so…I can only see blood being shed."

"We can always kill him. Then the whole world'll be happy."

Castor was ready to protest against the obvious stupidity when Labrador spoke.

"Killing is never the answer, Frau. But perhaps we can wound…"

"What are you thinking, Labrador?" Castor turned to the gardener; Frau propped himself on his elbows.

"Ayanami…would never dare attack us alone. He may be confident, but he is not unintelligent. If we can…if we can somehow disrupt his militia…"

"Then we can buy ourselves some time; figure out another way of handling this without the need for another war," Castor finished.

"Do we _know_ who's in his…militia?" Frau asked, finally pushing himself to his feet.

"No, but perhaps Teito-kun…"

"No, Lab, no. The kid is not getting involved in this. If the brat knows that Ayanami's after him, he won't hesitate to turn himself over, especially after the threats the bastard made."

"You know him quite well, Frau," Labrador smiled sadly towards the blond that paid no attention to anyone in the room.

"…It's what I would've done." He and Teito, it seemed, had many things in common.

The three bishops were soon in their own thoughts, trying to figure out a way to receive information on their enemy without putting anyone in danger.

"…What if we just ask Ayanami?"

Brown and blue turned, startled, to Labrador, who seemed to be mulling the thought over quite thoroughly.

"I'm sorry; I think I might have heard you wrong, Labrador…"

"Yah, it seemed like you said to _ask_ Ayanami," Frau gave a forced laugh.

"Think about it for a second," Labrador began to cross the room, arms crossed as he continued to mull over his thoughts. "Ayanami is a proud man; he deceives but does not cheat."

"Lab, I think those words mean the same thing." Thoughts of Labrador being the sane person in the room soon began to leave Frau's mind.

"No, they are different. If we confront Ayanami in a fair battle, there is a chance the man's pride might act as a means to keep him from attacking us when our backs are turned. Three of us against three of theirs. It is the only way to keep them occupied."

"…I think you two need to lay off the happy juice," Frau turned towards Castor, who returned his comment with a glare.

"It's the only way to keep this a secret as long as possible and still try to resolve it before anyone becomes the wiser. The higher order is looking at Teito-kun as a menace, a disaster waiting to happen. If this becomes known to the Pope, I doubt Archbishop Jio will side with us in the attempt to protect Teito-kun against the military."

"So…we are going to confront Ayanami in the end," Castor whispered, immediately seeing the many faults in the plan.

"Or die trying." Frau spoke as he strode towards Castor's desk, which always seemed to be riddled with work. He pushed the items aside and slipped a clean sheet of parchment and began to write. The scratching of pen on paper was the only sound that could be heard in the now quiet room.

* * *

**Dum dum duuuuuuuum!**

**A confrontation with the Chief of Staff!**

**Dum dum duuuuuuum!**

**(Rofl)**

**Okay, bad news: Imma going on a hiatus :O**

**I've been falling behind in school work...and I need to catch up. Please forgive me! Dx I know it seems like I just got back from a hiatus, but...**

**-whimpers-**

**I'll get writing as soon as I can, but don't expect updates in the upcoming month.**

**I hope this plot twist at least makes up for my leaving...**

**If you're really bored, read my other story. Its a semi-cross story, o7-Ghost of course. :)**


	11. Poisoned Relationships

**I bow my head in shame!**

**S H A M E !!!**

**How long ago did I say I was on a Hiatus...? To catch up on school work...? Which...I never did?**

**I'm sorry! Dx**

**Homework just sucks... _grrr_!**

**Well, I know I've said it before but I am really going to try to update more frequently...**

**I'm sorry.**

**Really, really, really sorry.**

**Anyway~**

**Read, now. Stop reading this stupid shizz~~**

* * *

The impossible task was soon created possible. Within a few days of the letter's creation, a reply was returned. Castor, above all, was surprised to witness the letter's arrival, almost certain that the plan was doomed to fail since its formation.

(They delivered the note by a church messenger pigeon, the reply was brought by a military falcon. No one had hope for the pigeon's return.)

The date and time for the meeting was established, now all that remained was the horrible game of waiting. So as weeks passed, the Barsburg Church continued in ignorance, life continued normally for the citizens within the seventh district, which included Frau, Labrador and Castor. They continued to rise with the sun, they accomplished their chores every morning, attended service, and Frau even found time to spend time with Teito, though their evening meetings (nightly gatherings were soon becoming difficult with Hakuren and Castor vigilant) were always interrupted by the church orphans or Castor himself. Neither slave nor bishop showed that it was a bother, instead they welcomed their guests. While Frau pretended to nap, Teito, usually leaning against the bishop just to have some sort of contact with him, would read to the orphans or play a game of chess with Castor.

Their lives were perfectly normal and soon they began to believe it themselves but Labrador reminded them the day before their intended meeting. The haunting reality of it all came back.

With the doll-maker's help, Frau, Castor and Labrador slipped unnoticed out of the church walls while their produced fake counterparts played their roles on the date inside the church. Only a selected few were rather suspicious of the dolls, mainly due to Frau acting like an actual priest.

It was top priority that the bishops returned no matter their injuries so no plan was made in case they ceased to return and no one, absolutely no one, was spoken to the day of. They _had_ to return, even if they were barely conscious and missing limbs. Someone had to be informed of Ayanami's plans, someone had to secure Teito to a safe location, someone needed to prevent another Raggs War from starting again.

- - -

Frau shrugged his shoulders, irritated and, above all, tense at the current situation. He didn't like waiting.

"Lab," Frau began but was not allowed to finish.

"They will come; three of them, Frau, now stop asking. It will not change in the next second, it will not change in the next minute, they _will_ come," Labrador answered with a bit of petulance in his voice. He had been asked the question so many times that he tired of it. Originally, Labrador felt he was the most nervous out of the three, but Frau clearly stole his spot, though Frau's nervousness was a rather annoying one. The gardener would have quietly mulled his fearful thoughts to himself, not annoy his party.

Frau cursed loudly, hating the clear blue sky for being so damn perfect on this particular day. He could have been dozing off in one of the flower gardens, away from his troubles and judging eyes (particularly the nuns, they always felt that there was always more work do to on top of the work he already had). Just him and the kid. Now that they accepted each others company so well, Frau found it that that was the only time he looked forward to. They never even did much of anything (and he meant _anything_) but just having him there, just his presence alone…_calmed_ him. He cursed again.

Castor gave a sigh, sitting himself on a rock near the cliffs face. They had traveled by hawkzile to the thin strip of land conjoining District 7 and 1. Now they waited, and waited, and waited…and waited some more. The time seemed to crawl along so slowly due to the only form of entertainment currently taking place, Frau's pacing. It was no fun to watch a grown man, especially one built as Frau, to act like a spoilt child.

"Frau, can you please just sit down before I hurt you," Castor demanded in a strict tone, though the blond easily ignored and continued his irritable behavior.

"Castor, he's worried," Labrador tried to defend the bishop who clearly paid no mind to Castor's aggravation.

"I'm worried too, but I am not causing other's stress to rise above normal," the russet hissed as he turned to the gardening bishop. "Either set him in line or I will."

Labrador was about to attempt at reuniting his friends when the off-sound of a roaring engine echoed through the rock crevice. All three were on their feet now, alert and tense as the noise grew louder. Finally, three hawkzile appeared in their line of view, and only three. The tiny black dots soon grew in size and it was hardly difficult to distinguish the Chief of Staff, Ayanami, from the rest. He rode up front, his right and left flanked by a dark-haired male and blond. They stopped yards away from the clergymen, dismounted their living vehicles and approached with an air of confidence. Frau stiffened but led the other two forward.

Church and military, oldest of foes.

"Bishops, so nice of you to invite us here on this lovely day," Ayanami spoke with false sincerity. He lifted a hand, presenting the taller dark-haired male to his right, "this is Lieutenant Hyuuga."

"Pleasure bishops." The male shifted the lollipop in his mouth into his cheek, allowing him the ability to smile widely. The playful male went so far as to give them all a quick curtsy, stretching out his hands as if holding the hem of a dress in a most delicate manner. He hid well behind his glasses, seeming almost innocent though malice clouded his eyes, not that the bishops could see it.

"And this is Konatsu, Hyuuga's Begleiter," Ayanami presented the short-haired blond to his left. His chocolate eyes seemed almost innocent as he acknowledged the bishops with a tilt of his head, having no need to voice his greeting.

Seconds ticked by and no one pushed themselves to continue the scene. The military men continued their charade of tranquility while the clergymen openly glared at the others, though Labrador looked more worried than anything. As this was wasting his time, Ayanami decided to continue the conversation.

"Quite rude not to introduce yourselves to my subordinates, bishops. I shall take the pleasure of doing it for you." Frau took notice that the man was certainly speaking much more than he imagined. "Hyuuga, Konatsu," the Chief of Staff addressed his company, "let me present to you…Profe," he signaled to Labrador, "Fest," Castor was addressed, "and finally…Zehel." Frau visibly tensed as he locked eyes with the man, "Now that introductions are settled, what can be of so much importance that you bring us to the middle of nowhere?"

Labrador stepped forward, breaking the hold Ayanami seemed to have on Frau. The blond bishop shivered.

"Ayanami, you must abandon this pursuit of Teito Klein, you know full well we would never allow the child to go to you."

"I know," the lilac-haired male replied instantly, earning a startled look from the bishops. "My plan was that the boy would be protected by the church." He spoke as if this information was obvious.

Frau stepped forward to retaliate but Castor was quick to stop him, holding out an arm to remind him to stay in place. They almost pounded into Frau's head not to stupidly rush in as he was prone to do at times. The smartest tactic was to figure out and expose weaknesses. So far, they had nothing.

"Then why…?" Labrador was about to ask: 'why come at all?' when a soft chuckle emerged from Ayanami, a sadistic smile conveyed on his features.

"Hyuuga, take note. We went out to look into a disturbance in the inlet, the clergy in District Seven attacked without warning though we provoked them in no possible way." Ayanami's eyes darkened drastically, the bishops visibly tensed, eyes widening as they soon began to realize what they had thrown themselves into. "We had no choice but to defend ourselves. Sadly, they were too hostile to be captured, they were killed during battle."

"Tsk, tsk. But of course, Aya-tan." Hyuuga shook his head in mock disappointment, his hand gliding over to his weapon which lay perfectly at peace on his hip. "How violent the Church's bishops are…"

"Fucken assholes," Frau growled through clenched teeth, his right arm visibly shaking. "The only deaths that'll happen today will be yours!"

The ground below them shook violently; Ayanami's violet eyes widened only a fraction as he watched Verloren's scythe appear in Frau's possession, who was now taking a running start toward the Chief of Staff. Hyuuga made an attempt to block the futile attempt on his Chief's life, though Ayanami easily indicated that this was his battle.

Ayanami, hardly being the one to send himself into battle for he found it a waste of his time, ran toward Frau with a smirk on his face. His arm swiped out in front of him, feeling nothing but excitement as he pushed his zaphion toward the incoming bishop, who easily dodged the mediocre attack. He pushed himself into the air, coming down fast on the military man. Ayanami waited patiently for the bishop, pulling out a blade at the last possible moment before the scythe ripped him two. With a grunt, the blond planted both feet on the ground, pushing with all his might onto the other male who equally pushed back. Their strength was even at the moment.

"He's just a kid," Frau pleaded through clenched teeth, the scythe in his hands rumbling greatly.

Ayanami replied with a smirk, pulling his weapon from its defensive position. Frau fell forward, Ayanami stepped off to the side to come into the blond's exposed side. The sword ripped through air, cloth, and skin. Frau strangled a cry as he stumbled off to the side, quickly taking up a defensive position once more. Ayanami kept his feet planted forward as his body partially turned to Frau's new direction, the blade at his side dripped dark crimson liquid.

"He's more than that," Ayanami began but did not elaborate as he turned with the objective of running the blade through Frau's heart.

Castor cursed as he watched the scene unfold, with one swipe of the sword and Frau was already injured. Without much thought of it, he stepped forward to aid his friend when a long silver weapon presented itself on his neck. The bishop could feel the cold metal on his skin. Quickly creating distance between himself and the weapon, a paper-cut thin scratch appeared on his neck, a tiny droplet of blood began to form at the end. He ran his sleeve across the wound; it would be dealt with later. His glare met that with another glare of glasses.

"You're battle is with me, Fest." Hyuuga smiled, his weapon held perfectly balanced on his outstretched hand. "Best not disturb Aya-tan when he's at work."

Seeing his superior already attacking one of the priests, Konatsu found himself eager to join the battle. He ripped his own blade out from its sheath and pointed it to the remaining bishop, a bit disappointed that he seemed to be paired up with the weakest of the bunch.

"Young one, please," Labrador implored with the small blond. Though he was the one to suggest this plan, he regretted it all now. Fighting never answered anything and now this young lad was brought into the mess. "There is no reason for us to fight."

Feeling offended at his choice of words for him and the fact that the lilac-haired male refused to fight him; Konatsu pushed himself forward, blade ready to rip through anything its master commanded.

The battle continued for some time, the sun was soon setting over the high cliffs. Frau struggled for breath; it came shallow and pained him entirely to do. He was ripped open all over, blood trickled down in small streams. His opponent, however, seemed unscathed.

Ayanami ran his gloved hand over the blade, cleaning it of crimson liquid. He had expected more of a challenge, but it was to be expected.

"Fighting a man with his own weapon is never a grand idea, Zehel."

Frau growled, watching him through a single eye, his other having swollen closed. It happened so fast, the bishop could still hardly believe he was attacked by this man that seemed to consider his movements before doing them. Ayanami had turned his own weapon against him and, in Frau's surprised state, rammed the butt of the blade into his face, more specifically his eye region.

"Go to hell," was the bishop's quirky retort.

"Give it up, bishop; my men are practically unharmed while you are nearly dead. Your companions are soon to follow you."

"We're all already dead, genius. How bout that?" Frau smirked, the fire in him sparked, he gripped the growling scythe tightly.

"You are sure to lose."

Frau took a quick glance towards the other two. Castor was barley managing to keep Hyuuga at bay. The man was quick, only managing quick swipes at the bishop though those cuts were many.

Labrador seemed to be having an easier time, though it appeared that the bishop was doing all he could to avoid the Begleiter all together. Neither was wounded though both were weary.

They needed to get out of there, and quick.

Frau turned back to Ayanami, who took that second of distraction to rush at Frau, easily and evenly running the blade through a hole in Frau's possibly cracked rib cage and out the other end. Blood leaked out of the corners of Frau's closed mouth as he forced back a cry. He coughed violently as he fell into Ayanami's arms; the Chief of Staff seemed to hold him without grimace. The bishop's body convulsed, the weapon in his hand soon retreated into his arm without needing to be told as such. With a harsh pull, the weapon was out of Frau, who could no longer hold back the pain. He yelled, grunted and finally settled into a pained groan, his body dead against Ayanami.

"Such a pity, too," the man whispered harshly into the bishop's ear.

"Frau!"

The limping body was pulled out of Ayanami's hold and was soon in Castor's. The smaller male struggled to hold Frau's thicker carcass; it was obvious the russet allowed himself to become defenseless but soon Labrador appeared as the guardian, once having gotten away from Konatsu.

"I…" Labrador panted, "s-suggest…y-you leave, A-Ayanami."

"Now why would Aya-tan do that? We clearly have the upper hand in this battle," Hyuuga purred as he took his place at his superior's right hand side, Konatsu soon took his left.

"Ask your Begleiter," Labrador spoke with a cold voice no one has ever heard him use.

Without warning, Konatsu dropped to the floor. His small body convulsing worse than Frau, who clearly had something wrong with him while the other blond did not. The male soon began to scream his pain, a dreadful, blood curling cry. The Begleiter ripped open his shirt, scratching away at his milky peach skin; turning it a marred red as tiny blisters could be seen forming. Hyuuga ran and knelt down next to his novice.

"What did you do to him!?" The man yelled, all playfulness gone.

"He's dying," Labrador began explaining as Hyuuga tried to calm the boy. "I've injected him with…something; the only antidote in existence is waiting in your office, Hyuuga-san. If you wish to save your Begleiter's life, you shall leave now. Wait any longer and he might not survive the trip back to the First District."

The small blond soon began twisting in pain, his muscles constricting against each other. His arms forced themselves to turn awkwardly as well as his legs. The sensation of bugs crawling along his skin was driving him to insanity; without origin, his skin began to split open, soon he began crying blood instead of tears.

Without hesitating much longer, Hyuuga took the boy into his arms, seized him desperately for Konatsu soon began to fight him, yelling hysterically while he bleed from every inch of his skin. As the Lieutenant turned to head for his hawkzile, Ayanami raised a blade towards him.

"And where do you think you're going?"

"A-Aya-tan…Ko-Konatsu! H-he… Look at him!" But Ayanami made no move to do so.

"Is your loyalty with me, Hyuuga, or your Begleiter?"

"D-do not make me choose, Aya-tan…"

Konatsu shrieked as his pain spiked, his pain was soon being felt by all around. His body trembled with such intensity Hyuuga could barley manage to keep the boy in his arms.

"He's my Begleiter!" The man shouted as if it explained everything before rushing to his vehicle and riding away without a second glance back.

The remaining four waited as the sound of the roaring engine soon faded in the background, Castor slumped against Frau's weight. The man was still breathing, though shallow.

"Ayanami, you cannot win this fight alone," Labrador did his best to threaten.

"…one practically dead, the other preoccupied and the last cannot raise his fist to save his life. I'll take my chances."

The Chief of Staff took a step forward though stopped instantly as he watched Zehel push himself to his feet. He swayed dangerously, Fest stood immediately to prevent the blond from falling. Zehel glared through a single eye, making the lilac-haired male reconsider his actions. He sheathed his weapon.

"Very well, very well. I'm too proud to admit defeat, but not stupid enough to get myself killed for it. Another time, another place, 07-Ghosts. I'll be looking to our next battle, Zehel. Take care of my scythe for me, yes?"

With a snap of his finger, his vehicle raced towards its master, allowed Ayanami to seat himself before speeding off toward the First District. The three watched as he disappeared, all sighed as soon as the noise died away. It was dark; nothing could be seen but a single light from the Seventh District and the many lights above them.

"Ow do ou ink ei gut is awkle tu ou at?"

Castor turned to Frau, who spilled out that meaningless jumble of words, in time to watch the blond bishop lean off to one side, falling like dead weight on the ground.

Terrified out of his mind, Castor knelt down to inspect the blond; he was snoring quietly. The doll-maker let out a sigh of relief. He began to ask Labrador if he could possibly bring Frau's hawkzile so they could drape him over it when he caught onto the gardener's strange actions.

Looking very intently at his hand, Labrador continued to snap his fingers, stealing a glance to the never-moving vehicles. Castor sighed.

"Labrador."

"Oh, sorry. I'll go get the hawkzile." _Manually_, he thought bitterly.

* * *

**Okay, so Lab kinda killed the mood at the end, but it was getting too serious! I wanted to leave you happy!**

**Bit ooc but I have a reason for everything!!**

**(I do, I'm not just saying that)**

**...**

**Anywho~~**

**This chapter came out shorter than I wanted... but I knew many would get bored with excessive fighting scenes so I kinda fast forward it. Ayanami is crazy, man! But things are going to get interesting... I got it all in mah head ;D heh heh heh.**

**...**

**Boo!**

**Till next time, folks!**


	12. White Lie

**A/N: Ya know something. I've come to a realization. I think I know why I'm lagging NL's updates… it's not exciting for me anymore ._. (says the person who just made Ayanami a **_**big**_** part of the story…) It's just. I'm a romantic! My love is for the love of others D: So now that Teito and Frau are… "together", I dunno, it's not as exciting as it used to be, ya know? Maybe you don't…and I hold nothing against you ._. I hold it against myself. Stupid romantic e_e I like the chase! :D and some of the stuff that comes after, but not a whole lot. I dunno. Don't worry! I'll try to over come this :D though I've noticed…I don't give Frau or Teito too many lovey dovey moments…is that bad? **

**A/Nx2: Characters get a bit ooc and backgrounds have been manipulated! D: Not that I know much of anyone's backgrounds besides Teito…(kinda). I dunno. Hope you guys (gals, whatev) will enjoy it! I apologize for not being able to update like a normal person…**

**Chapter Twelve**

**White Lie**

The soft sound of someone sleeping: calm, peaceful. It seemed like nothing in the world could rouse them from their slumber. The blond's chest rose and fell in the same rhythm with the beeping monitor beside him; the mask covering his face let out small hisses of air after every beep.

The room smelt of antiseptic and death, stained a pure white, from the sheets on the bed to the three walls that made up the enclosure – the fourth wall was entirely made of glass. With the wall free from whitewash curtains that were usually closed during the night, a stream of lunar light filled the room in a soft cream color, though did nothing to make the bedridden blond appear less sickly.

Or at least, that is what the blond's visitor thought. The male let out a tired sigh as he continued to watch from his standing position beside the bed. Seeing the bedridden male hooked up to so many instruments, it bothered him more than anything else in the world.

He ran a shaky hand through blue-tinted black hair. In a serious situation as this, he was without his lollipop.

"…damn Konatsu, wake up already."

Hyuuga had been at his Begleiter's side since the incident that left the boy barely hanging onto life. The Lieutenant was still uncertain what kind of damage was done to his inferior. None of the so-called 'top-trained' doctors could even begin to theorize what could possibly be wrong with his perfectly healthy Begleiter. The antidote that the swordsman found in his office certainly worked its magic straight away, but it left Konatsu in this sort of comatose state.

He had to force the shimmering blue liquid down his subordinate's throat seeing that the boy could barely understand what was going on around him. At odd moments, a questioning look would flash in his chocolate orbs and Hyuuga had to push past the thought that his Begleiter might not even remember who his superior was. But as soon as the blue liquid disappeared down Konatu's throat – the convulses, the bleeding, the pained look– everything stopped and disappeared.

But after that, the boy fell asleep. And has been sleeping for nearly five days now.

Konatsu Warren was the picture of perfect health. He ran five miles every morning, ate the most _disgusting_ but healthiest foods that could be found within the first district (everyone suspects that this is the reason the young Warren can digest Kuroyuri's kitchen experimentations), ran errands for not only Hyuuga but for Katsuragi and at times, Ayanami. The boy was on top of his work and of those in his squad, the Black Hawks. And somehow, through all that, he still managed to make Shuri Oak work for his position in the Hawks.

How could a boy like that, who can handle _Shuri Oak_ and still be sane, be bedridden though he is perfectly healthy? Not even a flicker of his eyes, a twitch in his fingers or toes…the boy was dead yet breathing.

The Lieutenant began to wonder if his inferior would ever wake up. Perhaps this was what that bishop, Profe, wanted. Perhaps this was God punishing him…

The door somewhere behind him slammed open, drawing his glass-covered eyes away from the blond to the sudden intruder. Hyuuga forced down his fear as he swallowed the lump in his throat.

"Aya-tan," he addressed the other a bit too softly.

The Chief of Staff entered into the room and moved to close the door behind him, pausing a moment to stare down the few nurses still on duty. As the door clicked shut, silence descended like a heavy rock in the small room. Hyuuga ceased to breathe as he tried to relax in front of his superior.

Since the incident, Ayanami gave the impression that he wanted nothing to do with his Lieutenant, avoiding the man whenever possible but what Hyuuga was beginning to realize was _he_ was the one avoiding the Chief of Staff.

Without warning, without reason, the Chief of Staff rushed to his inferior and threw him against the hospital bed.

There was a multitude of crashes, ripping, scraping – the heart monitor progressed from a steady beeping to an elongated flat line. The noise rung loud in Hyuuga's ears.

The glass wall beside Konatu's bed fractured, spreading its cracks like a spider stretching its many legs as the bed continued to push against it. The only entrance to the room was soon pounded harshly on; muffled shouts were drown out by the extended beep of the monitor.

Hyuuga immediately threw himself off the bed, wanting nothing more than to check that his Begleiter sustained no injuries. But before he could turn, the dark-haired male was grabbed by the collar and thrown aside like a rag doll. The lieutenant crashed front-forward onto a dresser beside the bed. He hissed as his abdomen stung with pain from the impact but Hyuuga wasn't allowed to dwell on it for long.

Once again he was thrown. Slammed onto a medicine cabinet on the opposite side of the room; the tiny bottles that were scheduled to be given to the patient were scattered all about the floor, their tiny pills spilled out onto the white floors like odd specks of confetti.

They crunched under military-issued boots and as soon as the sound ceased, Hyuuga looked up to meet with dead lilac. A gloved hand wrapped around the lieutenant's neck, the male could barely get out a gasp.

The Chief of Staff pushed down on his inferior's neck, bending the male backwards on the metal cabinet.

"You can easily defend yourself, Lieutenant," Ayanami spoke without much emotion. It was a chilling sound, mixing in with the flat line noise and struggling gasps all too well. "You are far better with a sword than I. As I recall, you massacred an entire small army with that sword on your hip. What's one man?"

Hyuuga grasped his superior's wrists with both hands, struggling to take every breath he could.

"Your sword is right there, Lieutenant," Ayanami continued, "One swipe, clean across the throat; can you do it? Kill your superior? Kill me?"

"N-n-n," the words were difficult to speak, he was so low on air and what little he did have was needed to keep his motor functions working but that did not stop Hyuuga from speaking: "Never, Ayanami-sama."

There was no compassion in those lilac eyes. Those empty words did not reach the man.

"…deserting me…for your _Begleiter_," he spoke the word as if it was poison on his tongue, "is just the same as placing a sword to my neck," Ayanami spat. He threw the other to the ground and watched as Hyuuga struggled to get on his knees, coughing violently all the while. With his subordinate showing his back to him so casually, a new anger boiled inside the Chief of Staff.

With a simple raise of his foot, Ayanami kicked down on Hyuuga's back, making the male's efforts fruitless as he fell down again. Multiple kicks to the ribs; a kick to the face and Hyuuga never uttered a cry, never protested, never cast Ayanami a look of distaste. Ayanami ceased in his beating.

Blood dripped freely from the lieutenant's mouth, staining the clean white floors with a violent array of red. The flat line noise continued to sound in the background, and that was where it was kept in Hyuuga's mind, in _the background_. The male struggled to his knees but failed altogether to move more than his hands and feet. With his glasses askew, there was little protection from the glare in his superior's eyes. Hyuuga closed his own while Ayanami squatted down beside his victim.

The dark-haired male expected another blow, another string of attacks.

He knew Ayanami to be mild-tempered; hardly anything could ruffle his plumage, it had to be this way or the man would long be dead on the battlefield. Ayanami was power-hungry, there was no doubt about that, but he was constantly watched so his actions had limitations. He was in a very high position to be powerful enough to control a platoon of sensible soldiers but not powerful enough to execute a declaration of war. Those above him learned to fear him; he remained Chief of Staff only because his superiors feared what a man like Ayanami might do in a more powerful position. So he always gave the appearance of being untroubled, calm, but anyone who could honestly say they knew the man knew the deadly viper that he really was. If he was prodded, he would coil: ignore the stupidity. Prodded again, he would glare: scare the stupid animal away. Prodded once more, he would hiss: threats always worked if you had the confidence to back them up. Prodded again, he would show fangs: his threats were real. Prodded yet again, he would rise to a fighting stance: he would warn one last time. The final prod and lest you be lucky to die a painless death.

So why the sudden increase in violence? Hyuuga knew Ayanami had a sadistic side to him, but this was pure anger he was kicking into his Lieutenant. The only explanation the dark-haired male could come up with was that Ayanami's façade was beginning to crumble. He was beginning to slip, and it all began with that stupid boy, Teito Klein. Ayanami was obsessed; before, whenever Chief and Lieutenant were alone, there would be this sadistic lust in Ayanami's eyes whenever any reference to the Seventh District was mentioned. Such an obsession with a single creature could cause anyone to do irrational things. Such as taking out their frustrations on a man who would _never_ retaliate against the man he respected.

"Hyuuga."

The lieutenant winced, mentally preparing himself for the incoming attack. It was sure to come, it _had_ to come. Hyuuga abandoned his superior to those bloody bishops.

Much to his surprise, the lieutenant was assisted to his feet, shoulders held tightly by Ayanami who struggled slightly to help the dead weight up. He leaned the battered male against the medicine cabinet; Hyuuga quickly gripped the cold metal, leaning all his weight away from his unstable legs.

Ayanami began straightening his subordinate's military uniform, making the dark-haired male appear more presentable. The lieutenant looked down to Ayanami, seeing nothing more than his military cap and a bit of his wavy lilac tinted hair, disbelieving what the man was doing.

The Chief of Staff stopped once his task was complete, both hands still holding the open flaps of Hyuuga's uniform.

"Hyuuga, you…are the only one I can turn my back to."

Ever so slightly, dark hues widened. He was trusted; _Hyuuga was trusted._

The military men that walk in and out of this district are hardly trained to be completely honorable. They fight to win, whether that means sacrificing one life for another or stabbing your fellow companion in the back. Those few soldiers who see actual combat know that to trust their cohort to guard their backs is complete rubbish. You never turn your back to someone you absolutely do not trust; that could end with a knife in your back and the simple 'it was an accident' explanation marked in your death papers. So for the Chief of Staff, for _Ayanami_, to say such a thing…it left Hyuuga speechless.

Ayanami allowed his hands to fall to his sides and moved lilac to meet with dark hues. His Lieutenant gave a curt nod, raising his hands to fix the broken glasses on his possibly broken nose. A gloved hand smacked away Hyuuga's from proceeding further.

From within his military coat, Ayanami extracted a similar pair of shades and easily replaced old with new, fixing them properly on his Lieutenant's nose. After stowing away the broken eyewear, the Chief of Staff ran his gloved thumb on the corner of Hyuuga's mouth, cleaning away any remaining blood the male had not been able to lick off.

"Disgusting how emotional your eyes get." Ayanami commented and turned abruptly to leave the room but was immediately called for.

"Ayanami-sama…"

Without bothering to turn, the Chief of Staff addressed the door before him, instead of the male speaking to him.

"What is this _god awful_ name you are addressing me with, Lieutenant?"

The corner of Hyuuga's lip twitched; he wanted a lollipop.

"Aya-tan…I apologize."

For a moment, the dark-haired male watched Ayanami's back; the man's shoulders fell slightly then quickly stiffened. He quickly threw open the door to reveal a crowd of hospital staff outside the room, all appearing anxious and terrified.

"Do not let it happen again," Ayanami spoke over his shoulder before walking off.

Immediately, the room was stormed with hospital staff. They quickly attended to their patient, reconnecting machines that needed to be so, moving the bed farther away from the cracked window, sweeping away the fallen medicine and just plain rearranging everything to what it once was.

Feeling a bit guilty, Hyuuga partially turned to his Begleiter, a wave of relief crashed over as he saw that the blond had no need for the oxygen mask, he was breathing fine on his own. The flat line had only occurred because the monitor had disconnected from Konatu.

"Is he…?" Hyuuga began, afraid to continue in case something _was_ wrong with the boy.

"I'm more worried about you, Lieutenant Hyuuga-sama."

Hyuuga turned to catch eyes with a petite nurse, her hazel eyes filled with worry and something else.

"I'm fine," he answered simply, turning back to his Begleiter.

"Sir, your bleeding from your nose, hairline. Please let me have a look at you and _assure_ that there is no permanent damage," she pleaded as the nurses around her finished their task of securing their patient's health.

"If you're done aiding my Begleiter," Hyuuga ran his thumb across the underside of his nose, eyes kept on his blond, "you are more than welcome to leave."

The nurse gave a slight _huff_ and stormed out of the room, her fellow workers in tow.

The monitor continued its steady beeping.

x-x-x

"What do you mean I still can't see him? It's been a week. He has to be better now."

"I am terribly sorry, Teito-chan, but Labrador-sama ordered no visitors until Frau-kun is completely healed."

Teito Klein did his best to keep his anger in check. The nurse meant well, he knew she did, she was just doing her job, but had it been one of the sisters, the brunet knew he would have weaseled his way in to see the bishop. And the fact that it his _charm _(as Hakuren says it) hasn't worked was frustrating him even more.

"Can I know how he's doing then?"

Frau had been strange a little over a week ago, treating Teito like the rest of the people within the Church's grounds. The stupid blond then disappeared for three days until word got to Teito that Frau was in the hospital. The brunet had stormed to the hospital and demanded to see Frau but that did not go over very well. He was treated like a child and told that someone would inform him when the bishop could receive visitors. It was the eight day of his continued appearance and he was still receiving the same answer. How could Frau not be better after a week? It was driving him _insane_.

"Teito-chan, I can't give out patient information to the general public…" the nurse spoke softly, seeing the hurt in those large emerald eyes.

"I. Am. Not. The. General. Public," Teito grounded out, his throat burning with the emotions he would not allow himself to publicly show. He gripped the reception desk tightly, his head hanging down in utter defeat. The brunet couldn't keep his shaking from visibly showing, and his stupid pride kept him there, unable to admit defeat so easily, for everyone to see how unstable he truly was.

"Stupid Teito, I told you to wait for me."

Emerald willed themselves up and caught with violent mauve.

"Hakuren…"

The long-haired blond shook his head, a mock grin on his face. Teito always looked priceless when he was about ready to cry. With a few strides, the taller teen was beside the smaller, and with the serious face he always wore around others, he presented his bishop pass to the nurse.

"Bishop Castor-san requested I meet with him, I was allowed to bring a visitor," the blond spoke.

"I don't wanna see Castor," Teito hissed, unsure of what was going on in his friend's head.

"You moron, you can ask Castor-san about Bishop Frau," Hakuren glared down at Teito, his voice hushed. "Not like the two of you don't see enough of each other…we're in a _church_ for heaven's sake…" he continued though hardly loud enough for Teito to hear.

Hakuren left his short friend to figure things out as he turned his attention back to the nurse.

"Everything seems to be in order, Hakuren-sama. Room A31."

The blond took back his pass and did his best to ignore Teito's staring as they made their way to the A-wing of the hospital.

"Hakuren-_sama_?" Teito finally questioned after a moments walk.

"The nurses are required to treat the bishops with some form of respect," Hakuren shrugged, thinking this should be old news.

"But she addressed Frau with 'kun'." Teito had to rush to keep up with his friend. One would think it was life or death at the rate Hakuren was walking.

"Bishop Frau is a patient." Hakuren turned and continued into the A wing hall, watching the numbers rise by odd number.

"She called me 'chan'," the brunet said irritably; he wasn't a girl to be addressed as such.

"It suits you quite well, I must say." Hakuren turned his head to watch the brunet's reaction from over his shoulder.

Teito's face slowly pulled in all the red color it could, his mouth hung open as he tried to come up with a smart remark though was failing, miserably.

"Hakuren-kun!"

Both males stopped at the sudden shout; the voice soon matched the face as they turned on spot and caught Labrador's ever smiling features. They advanced towards him.

"Teito-kun, pleasure as always," Labrador smiled.

"Same to you, Labrador-san," Teito returned.

"Hakuren-kun, are you meeting Castor-san today?" The gardener inquired politely, _as always_.

"Of course, I was on my way now. He mentioned something about helping the incoming novices with their training and handing the sisters their updated chore schedules."

"Well, his room is back there, actually…" The bishop's head leaned off to the side in innocent confusion.

The blond's head snapped to the nearest door: room 47, glared down at Teito, who shrugged with the look of 'how-is-this-my-fault' on his face, before proceeding in the right direction without uttering a word. The other two lagged behind the long-haired male, Labrador fell in step with Teito who seemed not at all eager to be visiting Castor.

"Frau-kun is fine."

The brunet lifted his face to Labrador's tender smile. His anger seemed to leave him as he continued to stare at soft lilac.

"He's been asking for you."

"Then why can't I see him?" Teito whispered almost inaudibly.

The gardener's face fell and he could no longer meet Teito's eyes.

"We've been…_discussing_ something. That's all I can say so far, Teito-kun." Labrador stopped walking and watched as Teito continued for a few steps before turning to meet his stare. "If it was up to me, you would have been informed…" Uncustomary anguish flooded Labrador's features; any resentment Teito had against the man quickly left. "But it is not my decision alone…oh, fuck. Whatever."

Teito blinked blankly at the bishop, unsure of what he heard.

Labrador removed his bishop's veil, running a hand through his messy lilac hair. He turned away from Teito as he tried to order his thoughts.

"I'm sorry, Teito-kun, I have said too much already," he shook his head, scolding himself for ever opening his mouth on the subject.

"It's…fine?" The brunet said uncertainly as he continued to ponder the thought of Labrador cursing and using the word 'whatever' as a means of dismissing a sentence.

The bishop smiled faintly and moved to open the door he paused in front of. With a tilt of his head, he invited Teito into the room, following behind the teen to close the door behind himself.

"We have another visitor," Labrador announced.

"Ah, Teito-kun. Good morning."

Teito's attention was pulled towards the man in a bed near the right side of the room. All about his bed, books and paper littered the unoccupied space. Though nothing seemed wrong with the doll-maker, he looked ready to collapse from exhaustion. His usually orderly rusty brown hair was messy and sticking up at odd places as if he had just woken up. Black bruises stained the skin under his eyes and the twinkle they used to have whenever he smiled, even behind the glare of glasses, was gone.

Hakuren cleared his throat loudly from his spot beside Castor on the edge of the bed.

"G-good morning, Castor-san," Teito finally spoke after composing himself. He never thought he would ever be able to see Castor look so…_weak_.

"You're well, I hope?" Castor inquired; his tone light.

"I should be asking you that, Castor-san."

"Teito…" Hakuren let out a breath, suppressing the urge to slap his own forehead. He turned to his mentor with all the seriousness he could posses. "I'm still in the process of teaching him proper etiquette, Bishop Castor. I apologize on his behalf."

Castor gave a laugh, though it sounded more tired than cheerful. "I hardly think his query is in need of apology. No doubt you have come to see Frau, right Teito-kun?"

The brunet gave a short nod, reminding himself to get Hakuren back for his little comment.

"He's over there," Castor pointed to the bed a few feet away from his own.

There were no machines, no heart monitors, IV drips, nothing of the sort in the room so when Teito's sight fell onto a large form hiding underneath smoky gray covers, he couldn't help but wonder _why_ they would not let him in. His thoughts flickered back to Labrador's half confession: _'we've been…_discussing_ something.'_ What exactly was that something?

Without stealing a glance to the other people within the room, Teito advanced towards Frau. For a moment, he watched the smoky covers rise and fall in slow, deep breaths. Frau was definitely deep in slumber. If Frau was just as worn as Castor, Teito didn't want to wake the bishop. Instead of the planned inquires he had for Frau (which might or might not have been yelled), Teito decided to let the man sleep. As long as he knew Frau was safe, and at least moving enough to talk about something the teen was purposefully being excluded from, that was all that mattered.

"He has been pushing six hours from his so-called 'nap'," Castor informed with slight irritation in his voice, "it is about time he woke up."

Teito turned with faint curiosity to Castor, only to freeze as a pillow flew past him to smack Frau's blond head.

"That was a nice shot," Hakuren blinked, the sound of pillow-to-head was louder than he expected. Ditto Teito's thought.

With the grumble that oddly resembled a bear, Frau took the pillow from over his shoulder and, with quick succession, sat up and threw it to the doll-maker, who easily slid down into his bed as if getting ready for his own nap, missing the pillow entirely.

"Can you stop messing with me while I sleep?"

"I distinctly remember asking you the same question when we used to share a room together. But did that ever stop you from your stupid shenanigans? No, it did not, so it will not work with me either. You have a visitor, by the way."

Frau turned to the mass blocking his peripheral vision, annoyance still on his face. That look turned to one of confusion as he racked his brain for Teito's appearance in his hospital room.

"What are you doing here?" the blond asked innocently enough.

"What?" Teito took a step forward, slamming both hands on the mattress, though the soft material took away from the audible impact. "What am _I _doing here? What are _you _doing here?"

A weary sigh escaped Teito as he stared into deep blue eyes. The teen didn't want to fight with Frau, not now that he was washed over with relief at seeing the blond well and unharmed, well, almost.

Unconsciously, his hand drifted to Frau's stained eye. Unlike Castor's, this bruise was real. Though his eye was slightly puffy, it was showing signs of healing; rotten yellow was turning the black a greenish color. His fingers lightly trailed the bruise as Frau's eyelids closed. Teito continued to trail the marks on Frau's features, thoughts of what _exactly_ he was doing, and the audience they had, completely out of his mind. His fingers trailed the length of Frau's nose, a slight bump indicated his nose was broken, or it was broken in the past but never healed properly. No one would have guessed since his nose appeared straight. He placed both hands on Frau's cheeks, earning a wince from the bishop as the brunet accidentally pressed too forcefully on a sensitive bruise. Two large hands suddenly wrapped around the teen's wrists, pulling them down to the bishop's lap. Frau's eyes opened slowly.

The larger male let out a strangled breath, his mind slacking off as he tried so desperately to figure out why such an simple, innocent touch could make him feel…well, could just make him _feel_! Lust was an emotion he was well acquainted with, but this wasn't lust. This feeling, as he stared into shining emerald orbs, was different. Pleasant but down right frightening.

"Shall we leave the two of you alone?"

To everyone's surprise (or, not really), Labrador was the one to make the suggestion, though the smile on his face cleared away any sarcasm that would have been thought to be imbedded in the question.

Frau immediately released Teito's hands, causing the teen to snap back to the present.

"Well? What the hell happened to you?" The teen did his best to keep his tone light, though it was still stern as he folded his arms across his chest; the bishop mimicked Teito as he leaned against the bed's headboard.

"I got in a fight," Frau answered after a moment's pause.

"A fight?" Teito asked, his tone dripping with skepticism. "And a simple…_fight_ left you like this?"

"Tch. You shouda've seen the other guy."

"What about Castor-san?" Teito turned his attention to the doll-maker, hoping to catch Frau in his little lie.

"I _was_ the other guy," Castor sighed, taking less time to voice his answer than what it took the blond bishop.

Frau looked a bit startled as this new piece of information reached him but the glare in Castor's eyes told him to play along.

"I went easy on you," the blond retaliated.

"Why'd you two get in a fight?" Teito questioned.

"I made a comment that angered Frau," the fatigue in Castor's voice lifted, "since the man can only speak with his fists I was struck and had no other choice but to strike back in defense."

"And you two left each other like this?"

"Well…I must admit we did take things a bit far."

"No kidding. Look at Frau. Bruised, battered and beaten." Teito held back the urge to sigh out loud and allowed the obvious lie to continue. He knew, at this point, if they wanted to keep something from him, they would, no matter what he did.

"Hey! I will not sit by while I'm being slandered! Castor kept running away, that's why I couldn't get a good hit." Frau made his annoyance clear on the matter, going as far as to glare and point at Castor, as if accusing him of something.

"Well you kept charging like a mad bull. It was simple to calculate your moves and strike back. After all, I am not the one with a hole in my lower right abdomen. How many stitches did you require again?" Castor gained an evil glint in his eye as he watched, with much satisfaction, at Frau's unease and anger. "Ah yes, it was twenty-seven according to your medical charts."

"You needed stitches too, asshole," Frau fumed. His glare remained aimed towards the doll-maker.

"As I recall, I only needed five."

"I didn't need any," Labrador added with a smile. Though he held an aura of peaceful bliss, it was a complete opposite to the turmoil churning inside him. He did not want his two friends fighting with each other, especially since the gardener held himself responsible for allowing their injuries go so far that they would need hospitalization.

"Labrador, why did you get in the fight?"

Amethyst turned to questioning emerald. The question was simple enough, but Labrador found he couldn't answer the young male.

"He was the one who got us to stop," Frau replied in Labrador's place, noticing the 'deer-caught-in-the-headlights' look on the gardener. Luckily, he gained Teito's attention.

"And…this is the truth?" Teito tested one final time.

Frau nodded his head, eyes tranquil and cold as iced lakes. This was the story that rose from their unplanned banter and he was going to stick to it.

Teito nodded, moving his sights towards his shoes as he no longer could hold Frau's stare. The teen grimaced slightly, a slight pain flaring in his chest before he forced himself to calm down and school his features to their usual look. He stole one last look at Frau and turned to proceed towards the door.

"Well, I guess…," Teito found nothing to say as he placed his hand on the knob. "Yeah." He pulled the door open and proceeded outside.

Without asking for permission, which was highly unusual for Hakuren, the blond teen stood and followed after his friend in an obvious hurried fashion.

Labrador watched as the door closed for a second time, his eyes filled with anguish. It was unlike him to contain such emotions in him for so long. Whenever such emotions would hit him, he always found ways to remove them. Whether it was loneliness that plagued him in the form of his past or sadness he felt whenever he saw someone less fortunate. Labrador always found a way to cheer himself up. Always. That is, except for this.

"How can…," amethyst eyes glistened with unshed tears, "you two lie so easily to those you care about?"

"Labrador," Castor spoke hesitantly, carefully, "we are doing it in order to protect them."

"Protect them from what?" The gardener snapped. He turned to the two bedridden males. "From Ayanami? I would rather be tortured by a cruel man as him than **know**the people I care about the most would purposefully lie to me. You saw it in his face!" Labrador pointed to the door, no longer himself but the confused, scared child he was becoming. "That boy trusts you so _much,_ Frau! And you feel no resentment lying to him?"

"Of course, I feel resentment! For fuck's sake, Lab, I'm not as cold-hearted as I make myself seem."

Labrador remained quiet, his hand lowered to lay limp at his side. In truth, it seemed, he was the only one pained by the whole ordeal. The two in bed might have the outward scars to show their pain, but the gardener would have made a hefty wager that he was by far more scarred emotionally than the two combined. He drew in a deep breath; running shaky hand ran through his oddly tinted hair. Labrador fixed his garbs, took his bishop's veil and proceeded to the door.

"I will no longer aid in this… fib you fabricated for the young ones. I will not reveal the secrets entrusted with me but if they directly inquire with me the details of our conversations, I cannot refuse them the answer." And with that, Labrador exited the room, leaving only two left.

Castor gave a sigh and sunk deeper into his mattress, the books about his bed fell to the floor and he rightfully could care less. All his fatigue came back.

"Frau, what do we do?"

"There's only one thing we can do."

The doll-maker turned his head to find Frau in a similar position as himself, though an arm was draped over the blond's eyes.

"What would that be?"

"Keep lying until we get caught."

"Frau…"

"What else can we do? The brat'll turn himself in if he learns the truth."

"You…really care for him?"

Frau visibly tensed at the question.

"Frau?"

"What happens…if we can't stop Ayanami?"

"We're going to. It is just a matter of how that we must figure out," Castor immediately replied. It had to happen. There was no other way around it. They _had_ to stop Ayanami. Heaven's knew the man would not easily give up on his own accord.

"But just, just think about it. What if we _can't_?"

The blond sat up in bed, his sights forward but not all there. His mind was going a thousand miles a minute and nothing seemed to be registering fully. 'What if' after 'what if' continued to plague is already confused thoughts.

What if Ayanami is planning an attack right this second?

What if giant platoons of soldiers are marching their way right now?

What if they've already infiltrated the church?

What if they've been in this church since its creation? Some of the bishops had sketchier backgrounds than he did.

Worst of all: what if Teito found out he was lying? What if Teito found out the truth? What if Teito went to confront Ayanami on his own? What if Teito was murdered by the bastard? What if…Teito _wanted_ to go back? The brat did it before. But that was then. Mikhail told him that Teito was tortured. Only a masochist would go back to that. _Only someone trying to protect those he loves would go back to that._

"Shit." Frau fell back on the bed, rubbing his face with both hands vigorously. "I hate kids."

x-x-x

"Teito! Dammit, Teito, can you just stop!"

It wasn't as if the brunet was running for his life. He was just briskly walking, a pace anyone could match. He wasn't running away. Why would Teito run from anything? He was a proud young man who never ran from a challenge or threat. So why did it feel as if he wanted to crawl under a rock and die?

"Stupid, can you stop and just take a moment to listen to me?"

"I don't want to," was the young teen's witty remark. Green eyes kept forward, a hardness that told anyone passing by that he was on a mission. What exactly that mission consisted of was still undecided.

"Ugh. You are acting like a child. Fine. We can always walk and talk."

Violet mauve glared at the back of the smaller boy's head, the intensity of his glare softened as he noticed the stiffness in the Teito's shoulders. He was really worked up. But that really gave the brunet no excuse to act the way he was. Though Hakuren did not know exactly what was going on between his friend and the bishops, he had a feeling that what they were arguing about was of extreme importance. Or at least, to those in the loop. As it were, Hakuren was not, so it troubled him far less than his hotheaded friend.

"Why are you so bothered by what happened back there?"

Teito gave no answer, just quickened his pace.

Hakuren stalked behind, ignoring the curious glances of the passing nuns.

"If you were my friend-."

"Stop using that fucking line!"

Teito whipped his head around, glaring with all the intensity he could muster at the moment, which wasn't much, only to growl as his sights fell upon a smirking Hakuren.

"That got you to stop. And really, Teito," Hakuren shook his head, a look of superiority on his face, "we live in a church. You should learn to watch your mouth. Now, come." The long-haired blond took the brunet by the wrist and easily spun him to walk in the direction the older teen wished to go.

"Where are we going?" Teito practically whined.

"That night, when you didn't come back to the room, you know, the one where you and Bishop Frau spent the whole night together-."

"We didn't do anything!"

Hakuren gave a small chuckle, looking over his shoulder to catch the sight of a bright red Teito Klein.

"Never said you did. But since we are on that subject, really, Teito, we live in a church. It would not kill you to be a bit more-."

"Hakuren, you say "we live in a church" one more time…" the brunet growled.

"Okay, okay. What you do on your own time is your business, I get it. I'll stop interfering. All that aside, that night, I do believe it was Labrador that came into the room. I couldn't quite see since I was trying to pretend to be asleep but he found a piece of paper, or something of the sort, from your side of the room. He read it in the room; I'm sure for he turned on the desk light but soon exited. He wasn't reading out loud but did gasp once. Did you leave anything on your side of the room that might be of interest to Labrador?"

The brunet thought for a moment, his sight on the ground as he watched his feet pace themselves with Hakuren's. How was it fair that the blond before him was taller when they were only a year apart in age?

"Teito?"

"Oh, um, I don't think so. I mean, all the stuff that matters I keep in a little box under my bed."

"No, it sounded like sheets were rustling. I'm sure it might have been under your mattress or pillow…" Hakuren continued to ponder the thought, the suspicious behavior of Labrador seeming more and more accusing. "So, you have no idea what he could have possibly found?"

"No. No one gives me notes. If one of the nuns wanted to give me something, they would've just given it to me personally, not like that, all secret-y and stuff. And if it was mail from outside the church, it would have been delivered, not hidden in my side of the room. Besides, only we know which bed is ours. Not like we broadcast that kind of information."

"Yes, but it is simple to see that the bed kept tidy and neat is mine while yours is…not so tidy and neat."

"Hey! I fold my bed."

"Teito," the blond gave a sigh, turning his sight upward to the high cathedral ceiling, "throwing your blanket over your mess of a bed is not 'folding' it."

"Whatever," he huffed, finally taking notice to his surroundings. "Hey, where are we going?"

"I followed Labrador out of our room," Hakuren continued to pull Teito along. The presence of people growing thinner by the second.

"Where did he go?"

"Castor-san's room."

**A/N: What's in Teito's memory box? I dunno. You tell me :) I planned this chapter to be longer but…I thought I should chop it in half :D Ya know, cliff hangers and what not~~ Till next chapter, let's hope it's not a year away xD**


	13. Obvious Violation of Privacy

**A/N: "**_**ZOMG! It didn't take you a year to update! Hurrah!**_**" –snickers–

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**Chapter Thirteen**

**Obvious Violation of Privacy**

"Teito, hurry it up. I think I hear someone coming."

"Well then, you do it, Hakuren! I'm not an expert at breaking into people's rooms!" Came the hushed reply.

"But I thought you were some childish delinquent. Isn't that why you were sent to Military School?"

Teito shivered at the proximity of his friend, who was a bit too close for comfort. His hot breath kept tickling the back of his neck as the brunet knelt down to get better view of the door's lock. Hakuren had taken it upon himself to stand guard, as he kept reminding Teito, that _that_ was the more difficult job of the two. He snorted and tried at picking the lock again, rolling his shoulders to give Hakuren a visual clue that he should take a step back if he didn't want the brunet to start fumbling again. He was comfortable around his friend, not to that extent though.

The blond teen took notice of Teito's acute awareness of the distance between them but chose to ignore it. It was just too funny watching Teito fumble like a teenage girl with a crush. He had to force himself to keep his snicker from surfacing. He settled with a large grin.

"I wasn't sent to the Academy because I was a childish delinquent. And you know that, bastard."

"Yes, yes. But Teito," he began, all seriousness now. The grin fell to a small scowl. "If we can't learn to laugh at our past, they only serve as painful reminders in the future."

"What about your past?" The brunet gave a small grunt as he forced the pin to turn, succeeding in removing one of the locks on the door. Seriously, how many locks did a _priest_ need in a _church_? Who was going to rob him? The Nuns?

Hakuren huffed, raising both hands in utter defeat. "My father is a complete and utter asshole. I have come to accept it. Learned to see it as fact. And at times, I indulge in coming up of new ways of making his life miserable." A malicious grin spread across the teen's face as his thoughts soon began to run away with him. "He would be nothing without his name. Or his money. I like thinking karma will soon catch up with him. Until then, my fantasies will have to do."

"Hakuren," Teito spoke to the wall, working on the last lock, which, of course, was the most difficult one.

"Hm?"

"You're scary."

"Teito-chan! I didn't think you would notice!" The blond threw himself at the teen, hugging him tightly around the neck.

The brunet gave a startled cry, slamming into the door by the blond force that was Hakuren. His hand immediately flew to the door knob, anything to keep him from crashing to the ground. His hand accidentally turned the knob, and soon he found himself on the ground with a very heavy blond on top of him. He mumbled a string of curses to the ground as the body above finally began to move off of him.

"Now that's one way to open a door," the blond observed as he removed himself from Teito and stepped inside.

Teito forced himself up as well, stealing the pins in the lock before closing the door behind him. He took a long look at the blond, utter bewilderment etched in his features.

"What the fuck was that?"

A light flickered on and Teito watched as Hakuren began shifting though papers on Castor's desk.

"What?" The blond asked, not bothering to look up from his search.

"You! Y-you called me 'Teito-chan' and…and you squealed?"

Hakuren gave a sigh, patting down his pockets for his glasses. "Okay, since you obviously found out, I might as well tell you. I…tend to act…"

"Giddy?"

"Yes, giddy, whenever I'm nervous or doing something wrong." Finally locating his eyewear, Hakuren slipped them on. His attention went back to the papers as he began to skim over them.

"But…" Teito racked his brain for a counterexample to this. "You've done something wrong before. Like, when we went to investigate the Warsphiles that infiltrated the church."

Hakuren gave an indignant sigh, as if the answer to all of this should be fairly obvious. "I am more terrified of what Castor-san might do to me than Jio-sama."

Teito thought about it for a moment, and then reminded himself that even though Castor usually had a pleasant smile on his face, he could be scary at times.

"See, now help me look. The note might not be here at all."

Teito nodded and went about looking for it, scavenging the floor while Hakuren looked about the more organized of papers.

The brunet had never been inside Castor-san's room, but had always imagined it to be tidy, like Hakuren's side of their room. However, books and papers littered the floor, in an untidy organized fashion. He shuffled through books, opening some and looking through them in hopes the single piece of paper would be in there. No luck. he didn't even know what to look for. Anything interesting, he supposed.

Pushing an hour of violating Castor's privacy, Teito gave a sigh, turning his attention to Hakuren who had fallen oddly silent in the corner of the room. Stretching out his legs, having sat on the floor for the good part of the hour, Teito leaned against his outstretched arms behind him. He raised an eyebrow, watching Hakuren who was intently reading a piece of paper, crumpled and wrinkled by the looks of it.

"Whatcha find?" He called out to his friend.

Hakuren's heart skipped a beat as he crunched the paper into his hand. He forced his usual smirk on his face as he discreetly slipped the piece of paper behind him.

"Part of Castor-san's diary."

"No way," emerald eyes narrowed in disbelief. He stood to advance towards the blond and had his skepticism confirmed when Hakuren stood as well, both hands behind his back.

"Hakuren, what'd you find?" He asked bluntly, taking another step forward, his eyes narrowed.

"Nothing, alright? Just keep looking on your side of the room." Hakuren was prepared to take a step back but realized his back was pushed up against the wall already.

The blond had no where to run, no where to hide. A thought occurred to him suddenly. He removed the paper from behind him and was prepared to shove it down his throat when Teito threw himself at the older teen. They fell into a heap, knocking over towers of books and paper, struggled to keep the upper hand. Hakuren desperately tried to use his height as an advantage but was overpowered by Teito's sheer will to win.

Teito, being smaller and nimble, squeezed his way out of Hakuren's hold and snatched the paper from the blond's outstretched hand. He promptly unwrinkled the paper, and quickly ran his eyes over the note. It was in his possession for only twenty seconds, but that was enough for him to read through the letter. The brunet didn't even bother to turn around when he heard the ripping sound of paper, followed by a hard swallow from Hakuren, as well as his cough.

"…Ayanami…slaughter…anyone remotely important to me?"

Teito turned to his friend, sure that his face gave away the horror that he was feeling. Hakuren's face fell, grief filling his mauve eyes.

"Teito-."

But the teen did not bother staying to hear the rest. He ran out of the room as if his life depended on it – no – as if the life of those he cared about depended on it.

"Teito! Get back here!"

The brunet huffed indignantly; angry tears prickled the corners of his eyes. Frau had kept this from him, he knew it. He trusted the man, trusted him so much, and this is what he received in return? Lies and deception? He loved the stupid bishop. There, he admitted it. He loved him like no other. Even a bit more than Mikage. Frau was always there when he needed him, whether Teito knew he needed him or not. His kind words, soft demeanor. Frau may look like an intimidating pervert, and he was, but when no one was around, the man knew how to be gentle. Knew how to be gentle around a paranoid, untrusting, terrified ex-slave.

"Damnit, Teito!"

Hakuren reached out and grasped the smaller teen firmly by the arm. Using his weight, Hakuren threw himself back, throwing Teito off his balance. They crashed into the ground, the brunet on top of the blond. Hakuren groaned at the weight, shifting until he straddled the brunet, effectively pinning the thin arms over his head. Even though his head buzzed in pain, Hakuren gave a smirk of satisfaction, glad he was able to get the upper hand.

"L-let me go!" Teito growled, pulling on his wrists. He hated being placed in such a humiliating position. "I have to stop this! I have to stop Ayanami from hurting the people in this church!"

"Teito! Think, just think!" The blond cried in aspiration, wanting nothing more than for Teito to see to reason. He kept his violet eyes locked onto forest green, showing Teito that he would do everything in his power to keep his friend from committing a grave error. He had read the note, though understood very little of what exactly the Chief of Staff wanted with Teito, he knew that the circumstances were grave. "You never do that, you are too quick to rush into a problem without thinking of any possible outcome. What do you think will happen if Ayanami captures you? Hm?"

"...I don't know." Teito answered honestly. He was a bit startled at the intensity of those violent mauve eyes.

"Of course you don't. That man will most likely kill you. Did you ever think of that?" Hakuren spat. "Not only will he end your life, he will find some way to blame it on the Church. By doing so, he can start another war and put an end to everyone within the Seventh District. So he will end up killing you and killing everyone here, regardless of your self-sacrifice. And don't even consider taking him on by yourself." He removed his hands from Teito's wrists, pointing an accusing finger into the smaller teen's chest. "The man is more than twenty years your senior. His Zaphion was trained to be deadly, he won't hesitate to use it, and you can hardly handle a bascule."

"But I can't just stand by and do nothing!"

"No one is asking you to do nothing." Hakuren took hold of Teito's shoulders, trying to shake some sense into the brunet. "What the bishops' probably want is for you _not_ to do something drastic that will only end with your death."

"You don't understand." Teito placed an arm over his eyes; slightly gracious that Hakuren had stopped shaking him. He was starting to develop a headache from all the drama, abuse and restrained emotions.

"Damnit, Teito! The world does not revolve around you!" Hakuren gripped Teito's shirt tightly. "Though you don't tell me, I know that there is something big going on, and you are the center of it, but can't you think of the other people around you? The people that might be affected if you chose one decision over the other? Get outside of your little box, Teito, and open your eyes to the world around you."

Teito flung his arm to the side, just missing Hakuren's face. As the blond turned his attention back to Teito, he watched as his friend's eyes rimmed with tears. He was a bit shocked. Teito growled in reply, throwing his arm back around his eyes. Really, the boy needed to shed his emotions more often.

"I have opened my eyes to the world around me! And all I see is death!" The brunet cried out. "Since I was sold to the military, that's all I've ever seen. My life's purpose was to end others. And I thought that coming to this church would change me somehow, but it hasn't. I was the reason Father died, I was the reason Mikage died as well! I caused it, me!"

"...Teito, just let the bishops protect you-."

"I've been protected all my life! The military protected me from the world around me, from my own emotions. Mikage protected me from Ayanami and suffered the ultimate price! Frau...Castor...Labrador have protected me from everything else, and you, you protect me from my doubts and fears. I'm tired of being protected! I thought that when I became a bishop, I could protect others, finally, repay what Mikage has given me but it seems that no one is letting me do that! Everyone has to protect Teito Klein, because Teito Klein is so damn valuable! My life is fucken trash!" He removed his arm again, openly glaring at the long-haired blond through watery eyes. "My life is worth no more than the damn ground I walk on so stop treating me like I'm some sort valuable item that needs to be kept nice and polished!" Teito pushed against his friend. Hakuren fell beside Teito, legs intertwined, without much of a fight. The brunet stood to his feet and began walking down the hallway but came to an abrupt stop. Eyes still brimming with tears but face set with a determined hard look, he gave his friend a few things to consider before leaving. "How would you feel if you were in my situation? Think about that."

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**A/N: You guys know how I said that the last chapter was only half of what I initially intended to update? Well, this update is only half of the other half xD Or…kinda, less than half. –rofl– but I want cliff hangers, damnit! And, its one o'clock in the morning and I'm kinda bad with transitions when I'm tired… Don't know when the next update will be, cause I really want to re-write NL. Or, at least fix the obvious stupidity. I want it to be **_**perfect**_** when I finally mark it COMPLETE! Yosh~ Let's hope the update is soon. Might be, seeing that I have nothing else to do with my time. Ha! Till next time, folks~**


	14. Selfish Desire

**A/N: Man, I didn't realize how crappy my writing used to be. I **_**sincerely**_** want to apologize for those who had to put up with that (._.) Geez. Okay, so we are now in the fourteenth chapter. I have an idea of how I want this story to go but I will not say anything at this point. Why? 'Cause I had a different idea of where to take this story when I first began, another idea when I was roughly in the middle (somewhere around Mikhail's appearance) and now too. Basically, I'm making things up as I go xD Don't want to give anything away if it won't end up happening later on. But that is unimportant! I don't need to tell you anything about how things will end 'cause you're just a **_**READER**_**~! You take whatever I give you! –lawl– So stop reading this nonsense and read the nonsense down there!**

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Chapter Fourteen**

**Selfish Desires**

Running at a pace he never knew he could, the young Oak ran through the hospital corridors, already having been told three times that: _"Running is not allowed inside the hospital!"_

But he had to run. There was no point in discussing it, he _had_ to. How long had it been since he allowed himself the stupid pleasure of remaining on the ground, staring after Teito's long vanished form? Teito could have been halfway out of the district by now. Hakuren had to inform them, inform Frau about what happened. Teito always listened to Frau. And besides, no one else knew the circumstances. No one would understand the urgency.

He released a sigh of relief as he neared the A Wing of the hospital.

x-x-x

"I want to apologize," Labrador sighed as he nervously held his bishop's veil in hand. After having had time to ponder on the thought, he decided that he might have harshly judged his peers. Though he still did not approve, he did not want to make enemies of his friends. As a means to show his sincerity, Labrador bowed deeply.

"Castor, make him stop, it looks like he might touch the ground. That's kinda creepy."

"Labrador, there is no need for your apology. We all have the right to our own judgments. Just because yours differs from our own does not mean we resent you in any way. Also, you may have a point in the manner we are keeping everything secret from the children. They certainly will not react well when they hear-."

"He's leaving!" Hakuren had thrown open the door, cutting Castor off mid-sentence. He paced the room, still near the doors exit.

Labrador stared at him, openly startled, as well as Castor. Frau raised an eyebrow, wondering what the kid was talking about.

"Yo, Hakuren. What are you talking about?"

"Teito!" The long-haired blond turned to glare at Frau, yelling the answer as if it should be obvious. Once he realized who he was glaring at, what with the man glaring right back, Hakuren stumbled over his words, mortified at his actions. "U-um, well. Uh. C-Castor-san, I want to apologize now, w-we, meaning Teito and I, had broken into your room without permission-."

"Obviously," Frau added, earning a glare from Castor causing the blond to shut up instantly.

"W-well, T-Teito seemed pretty upset about what had happened this morning so I thought of entertaining him with the idea of finding out what had occurred that you were not willing to tell him. I never thought that we would actually find what we were looking for." The intense stares of all three bishops combined caused Hakuren's mind to temporarily turn to mush, his sentences failing to form into something coherent. "He, Teito, read the note. He's left. To find Ayanami."

Horror-stricken, Frau jumped out of bed only to fall back into it. He growled at his weakened state and, a bit slower this time, placed himself on his feet. Slowly adjusting to the feeling of having to support himself up again.

"Frau! You're injured."

"Thanks for the obvious, Castor."

"Kid," Frau addressed Hakuren, "where'd the brat take off to?"

"I-I'm not sure."

"Go check your room. Hopefully he's still there."

Hakuren did not wait for Frau to finish but took off that instant.

"Imma go check the district entrance."

Placing his coat on and stealing the cane by his bed, Frau struggled to force his weakened body to move forward. If his injuries were not so major and his body pumped full of muscle-weakening painkillers, he would have been out of the hospital ward in seconds. He would have to settle with "in minutes".

The hurried pair of footsteps behind him served as initiative for Frau to move at a quicker pace. He needed to be the one to reach Teito first. It was a petty thought, that he needed to be the one to set the boy straight, but it had always been him. In times past, it was always him.

Pushing past a much startled nurse, Frau hobbled towards the hospital's exit and down its flight of stairs. His eyes lifted to catch sight of a shadowed blue stalking after the bright colors in the sky as day became night. If the boy disappeared during the night, there was little chance of finding him before the brat was well out of their range.

Taking the longer route, so as to enter through the main entrance to the church and perhaps cut off Teito's means of escape, Frau continued his advance towards the church's main grounds. His sapphire eyes dashed back and forth, trying to catch sight of Teito. He could only hope that Teito had not left yet or did not think of taking a different route. Somehow, he knew neither was the case. Call it instinct.

And as Frau gazed out past the fountain and greenery of the church's main courtyard, sapphire eyes caught sight of young Teito Klein making his way out of the cathedral. Even from far away, Frau knew it was him.

"Brat!" He yelled. Anger, happiness, frustration and relief: they all washed over him upon seeing the boy. His only wish now was to smack the teen upside the head and embrace him.

Teito stopped suddenly upon recognizing the voice calling out his, well, _nickname_. His eyes widen a fraction as he began to register that mess of golden blond hair upon the tall figure. He had desperately hoped that Hakuren would have taken a bit more time reaching the bishops. This had him thinking that perhaps he should have just left immediately when he had left his friend bewildered in the hallway but as things turn out, he _had_ to go back to his room and just _had_ to take his possibly last stroll through the cathedral shrine of Zehel. Who knew it would end up being 'Frau' that would keep him from going after all?

Teito turned and rushed down the quad, eager to outrun the bishop and at least prolong their meeting. It was evident that Teito would not be leaving the District anytime soon but that did not mean he had to confront the raging blond right then and there. Perhaps in a week Teito could show his face around in public, once Frau calmed down but much to Teito's amazement, as he turned to look over his shoulder, Frau cast his cane aside and took a running start towards him.

"Frau, you're going to rip out your stitches!" Castor yelled after the priest but Frau paid no mind.

Like a hunted deer, Teito panicked and pushed himself to run at a quicker pace. Frau was beginning to close in the distance between them at a speed a man pumped full of morphine and suffering from fatigue should not be able to run.

With a swipe of his hand, frustration being his main emotion, a blast of Frau's zaphion hit just inches from the location where Teito would have been had he been running any quicker. Teito came to a halt, Frau caught up. All that separated them now was a deep channel of rushing water.

Teito's blood pulsed violently inside his skull as his eyes continued to dash towards the crumbled concrete in which Frau had inscribed his zaphion. It appeared like Frau was actually _aiming to hit_. His survival instincts began to kick in, out of habit than anything else.

"And where the hell do you think you're going?" The larger male growled, his weakened body protesting against its new vigorous activities. He trembled though hid it well.

Teito masked his features with a look of utter rebellion, squaring his shoulders as he began to channel his own acute, _deadly_, zaphion to his fingertips. They tingled as if shocked with electricity; primary emotion: fear.

"Did you honestly think I would idly stand by and do nothing?" The brunet yelled, clenching and unclenching his fists repeatedly. Only attack if provoked, he continued to remind himself.

"No, but I didn't think you were so depressed as to want to _kill_ yourself! What you're doing is stupid, Teito Klein!" Frau pointed an accusing finger towards the suddenly startled brunet. "And I swear to God himself, here, in front of his church, that I will kill you myself before handing you over to that man!"

Somehow, Teito felt Frau's threat as real as the air around him. His heart quickened its beating; he began to become too aware of his surroundings. Fight or flight.

"You can't stop me from doing this," Teito retaliated, "I need to protect the people of this church!"

"And who said you had to be the one to protect them!"

"I'm the only one who can!"

Frau threw another wave of zaphion, anguish clearly embedded into the Church's cement grounds as Teito barley managed to avoid the attack.

Retaliating, Teito quickly prepared to launch his own attack, but as he willed rage into his heart, the look of pain on Frau's face pulled back some of that hate and launched a mediocre attack, something Frau easily blocked with a shield he conjured up.

Frau took a step forward, his body trembling with pain but continued none the less.

"Don't come any closer!" Teito threw another attack.

The blond could feel the fear riddled in that attack as he lessened the strength of the shield he fabricated. This showdown of power was not going to get Frau anywhere. The boy would just keep pulling back; keep more and more things bottled up. He needed to know what the boy was going through. He needed to know how to appeal to him, and forcing his own ideas onto the kid was definitely not a way to win him.

The blond priest took in a deep breath; his zaphion felt so out of control. Perhaps it was due to its lack of use over the years, being too dependent of Verloren's Scythe, but that seemed unlikely. What seemed to be more likely were his unstable emotions.

"Teito," he began, "let me help you."

Frau was not asking Teito to simply do nothing, he was not asking to take on all the responsibility; what the bishop was trying to convey was that the teen had a friend now, they could lean on each other in times of need. And now he understood why the boy had been so upset at learnimg that the three bishops went off to fight Ayanami on their own. They tried to spare Teito the responsibility of having to face such a thing but, of course, Teito didn't want to be taken care of.

"No."

Frau felt a slight shock at hearing the response. At first he thought he misheard, what with the rushing water being so near, but when he asked for the reply to be repeated, he received the same answer, this time sturdier and with more determination. Green orbs burned with false bravery and with pure hope.

"No, Frau, no! Look how Ayanami left you! You can't help me beat him!"

"And you can take him on your own!" The bishop did not mean to sound so bitter but he had hoped that, at this point, he could have easily won the teen over.

"I won't have anyone dying for me ever again! I'll rather die myself than see someone I care about meet that fate!"

"And you think I want to take on that burden, damn selfish brat!"

Frau had enough. He pushed himself once more, jumping over the wide channel but failed to land properly. As soon as his feet returned to the ground, a sharp, intense pain flared and he lost all feeling in his legs. He stumbled forward, sure of his imminent meeting with the ground when a small body appeared under him, catching him before he hit the ground. Well most of him, anyways.

Teito winced, he was sure he skinned his knees. He struggled with Frau's larger frame, unable to support him in the awkward kneeling position he found himself in. The priest did his best to assist the teen, heaving himself to sit up as he tried to use the boy as little as possible as a means of support. The teen could not help but shiver at the cool breath that brushed his exposed ear and neck as Frau desperately tried to breathe normally.

"Y-you know," Frau tried to speak in between breaths. His voice was so low, Teito strained to hear, and though he did not want to, he placed his ear closer to Frau's mouth. The chills he was receiving were not as unnerving as he once thought, though they definitely a distraction.

"W-when we went," Frau began to stutter, his body shivered greatly, "t-to c-confront Ayanami, I prayed." Sapphire willed themselves up and caught sight of emerald. Teito was not trying to hide the concern he felt now, the fear that ravaged him since learning about the letter. "I prayed to God that I _had_ to survive, that I _had_ to get out of there alive." The blond took another deep breath. Teito shifted in place though made no move to remove Frau; the bishop had laid his forehead on the brunet's shoulder, barely speaking above a whisper. "I prayed...that I _had _to come back to you. I know you've been through so much, more than anyone should be allowed to go through. I know you're scared about caring about someone else, and I know you've already betrayed that by caring about me. I will not be the reason you cry again."

"I don't cry," Teito shoved in half-heartedly, tired at being seen as emotionally unstable.

"W-whatever you say." The bishop forced a smile as he pulled away; the teen did his best to return it. "Let me help you..."

The blond slumped against the teen again, catching him off guard. Teito nearly fell on his back, still in the kneeling position, and at this moment, he really did not want to begin his lessons on flexibility. The brunet struggled to regain a vertical spine and as he pushed forward, Frau's body slipped away from him. Soon a mess of blond hair had come to rest on the teen's lap; the priest resting on his side.

With a sigh exposing all the fatigue that plagued in him, Teito began to absentmindedly stroke the male's hair, all the while watching him. Frau was not asleep, but just resting his eyes. Teito should call Castor over to help him move Frau back to the hospital, but as he turned to did so, a crimson flash caught in the corner of his eye. His heart beat quickened as he turned the blond on his back.

The right portion of Frau's abdomen was stained red, as well as part of his coat and the ground below. The stitching was ready to rip in two, stretched to the point of ripping through Frau's skin.

"C-Castor-san, Labrador-san!" Teito yelled over his shoulder and immediately saw the two bishops make their way towards them. His sight fled back to the man on his lap whose temperature began to spike drastically.

Teito pulled on his sleeve, using it to wipe away the sweat lining Frau's forehead. Teito willed himself calm, not wanting to be a heaping bundle of unrestrained emotions. But as he continued to watch Frau struggle with his pain, he couldn't help but let out a strangled cry. The teen took a deep breath and calmed himself again.

"Frau, Frau stay with me, alright? You're going to be fine," he tried to reassure the other. "You just ripped out your stitches..." _and lost a shit load of blood_, he added as an afterthought.

"Damn it, Frau!" Castor cursed as he finally reached the two, throwing his own wooden support aside as he knelt beside the blond. Labrador arrived soon after.

It was too late to take the bleeding bishop to the hospital; they risked sending him into shock if they tried moving him now, so Castor prepared to re-stitch Frau right then and there. He pulled out the sewing kit he had with him at all times (prepared with surgical needles and string) and began the preparations.

"Labrador, water and bandages. Ask one of our Sister spectators to come and lend a hand," he commanded and Labrador followed without question.

"H-how ironic that I would end up dying in front of a church..." Frau added as a joke, though the teen found it anything but.

"It still amazes me that you can properly use the word 'ironic' in a sentence..." Castor joked along, pulling out a razor to remove the strained stitching on Frau.

Teito caught sight of the metal's flash; a sob forced itself out. Frau tensed under him and Teito instantly cursed himself for being so weak. He rested his forehead on Frau's, unable to confront any of the people around him. His tears trailed silently along his cheeks and into the older man's matted blond hair as Teito tried to keep his shaking to a minimum.

Labrador soon arrived with two very worried Sisters at his sides. One of them quickly jumped into action and began to clean away as much of the blood as possible, giving Castor better vision of his task. The other set down the giant bowl of water she brought along and ran back to retrieve more towels, and possibly a blanket.

"Frau, we have to do this without anesthesia..." Castor informed as he readied the razor, the Sister at his side tensed though held a clean cloth ready in case Frau began to over-bleed.

"Do it," Frau answered simply and instantly let out a cry of pain.

It happened all in unison, Teito threw his arms out, drawing Frau's pained face towards his own; Labrador caught Frau's left arm and leg, to prevent the man from retaliating; the Sister caught Frau's right leg, though with much difficulty; Frau caught Castor's wrist, though thankfully it was his left wrist, one without the sharp instrument; and Castor swiped the instrument clean across, the wound reopened.

Fortunately, the other Sister returned and went to helping Castor as the man only had one hand to work with. She kept a strong will as she pressed the two separated pieces of flesh together to allow Castor to stitch. Thankfully, the man had no need to be cautious; he had been stitching since he was in grade school, in his closet, away from the disapproving eyes of his father. He could do this in his sleep.

"Keep him down!" Castor took Frau's wrist and pried it off his own, placing it on the ground to kneel on it. His patient let out a pained moan and mentally thanked Teito for concealing Frau's face. He did not think he could continue if he saw his fellow bishop in pain.

The doll-maker and sister worked vigorously as Castor wrapped up his stitching, snipping away at the string once the tie at the end was completed. The sister working with him began to clean away the blood and, thankful to Teito for concealing the blond, soaked a clean cloth with alcohol.

As soon as the soaked fabric touched his skin, Frau ripped his arms away from Castor's knee and Labrador's hand but, to everyone's amazement, he draped them over Teito's neck, pulling the boy down in an even more back-aching stance.

For a moment, the four watched the scene before them. Frau was visibly shaking, trembling in a way they had never seen before; they did not know if it was just from pain or if the tough, egotistic rebel bishop was crying. Now they silently wished for Teito to move, so they could see if rain could actually fall from his sky blues. But of course, no one would ever dream of saying something like that. Teito almost seemed to share his pain, trembling with as much force as Frau. He kept his head down; his mop of milk chocolate hair draped both his features and Frau's.

Labrador coughed gently as everyone continued to stare; they easily composed themselves and went about to finish the task at hand. A gluey paste, brought by one of the sisters, was placed on the wound, artificially sealing it. Next followed the bandaging. Frau finally ceased from fight them and the wrapping was completed in short time. Help was sought out by the Sisters as they took the soiled cloths and the bowl filled with red-tinted water with them. Labrador unfolded the blanket that was brought earlier and spread it over Frau. The day was slowly coming to an end as the sun began to disappear into the horizon. The temperature around took a drastic plunge; they needed to keep their patient from going into shock.

Slowly, Frau unclasped the hold he had on the smaller male and placed his hands on his chest, measuring his breathing to keep it under control. Above him, Teito gave a small groan as he straightened his back out, head still hung down.

"Frau..." to his left, Labrador inquired softly, "How are you feeling?"

"Like shit," Frau croaked though made no move to acknowledge anyone or even open his eyes. They still could not tell if the bishop had been crying; he looked exhausted and had tear stains but he had tear stains all over his face. Teito could have easily provided those.

"Next time stay in bed, stupid pervert," Teito added his input as he ran a sleeved hand over his eyes. He looked up to the two bishops and gave a faint smile, silently thanking them. They both returned his smile with more heart than Teito might have imagined. The teen equally looked exhausted; both eyes were bruised black and red from all his silent tears.

"Next time," Frau yawned, doing his best to avoid moving since his body still trembled with pain, "don't leave."

Teito let out a strangled laugh, shaking his head lightly. "Just get better, Frau. Okay?"

One of Frau's hands glided away from his chest and began searching the ground for something. Somewhere around his shoulder region, he found a warm hand and wrapped his own around it. He received a squeeze for his efforts but soon his hand was lifted up and placed on top of another. The blond cracked an eye open and saw, to much of his horror, Labrador smiling sweetly down at him, his hand hovering over Frau's and Teito's.

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone that happened," Labrador did his best to suppress his grin and continued to smile sweetly.

Teito gave a faint laugh and squeezed Frau's hand while his other lightly scratched the bishop's scalp.

"What happened?" Castor asked after putting away his equipment. His sight fled from Labrador, who looked just as he always did, to Frau, who looked a bit red on top of looking incredibly ill, and finally to Teito, who appeared to be amused with something.

"Nothing at all, Castor. Ah," Labrador looked over his shoulder, "it appears help has arrived."

"Tell me." Castor looked to the three again, feeling somewhat left out of the joke.

"The man said drop it, four-eyes," Frau grumbled, placing his free arm over his eyes.

"Frau just did something stupid, as always, Castor-san," Teito admitted and was glad when Castor agreed to leave it at that.

* * *

**A/N: God, I'm in love with **_**commas**_**. I use 'em too much, gotta stop… Well, moving on! Whatcha guys think? Twelve, thirteen and fourteen were supposed to be one whole chapter but…eh, CLIFFHANGERS! –MWHAHAHA!– I thought I ended it pretty cutely. Hm, don't know if I should be proud of that or not. –lawl– Hehe, Frau held Labrador's hand xD HA! Probably take me some time before I can think about that without giggling. Well, till next time, my pets! :D (I have always wanted to say that. –snickers–)**


	15. Responsibilities

**A/N: It's been a while, eh folks? :D No, I did not **_**die**_**. And I most certainly was not abducted by aliens and had been performed anal experiments on! That's just gross.**

* * *

**Chapter Fifteen**

**Responsibilities**

It was the sensation of something wrapping around his throat that dragged him into half-consciousness. It was difficult to breathe and each breath he could manage burned painfully. His head swam with an uneasy feeling, and as he forced his eyes open, the world around him blurred into one unappealing color. It left the blond bishop rather disoriented. He shook his head, willing the dizziness to dissolve and disappear. As a strangled groan slipped from an irritated throat, he sat up completely disoriented and nauseated.

His gloved hand slithered through his disheveled blond hair and tugged on the strands lightly, his head pounding as blood rushed through terribly small veins. His eyes scanned the room once things began to settle down. Everything was either white or some sort of white shade. The smell of clean and alcohol left a bitter scent that lightly stung his suddenly sensitive nose. The blond sniffed and pitched the bridge of his nose, his eyes tightly shut.

The vague memory of having injured himself filtered into his murky thoughts. He then remembered what happened after the injury. He groaned, loudly. If there was ever a bigger idiot in the world, Frau would sure like to meet him (or her) and trade stories. That evening was about the most humiliating thing that had ever happened to him; the funny thing was, he didn't realize it during that time.

Giving a sigh, Frau dropped both hands onto his blanket-covered lap, his sights on the hospital room's door. Not that he was expecting it, but he was rather surprised to find himself alone. Last thing he remembered was dozing off with the boy sleeping next to him. After "the incident", the brat wouldn't let go of him. Even as Castor and Lab helped carry Frau back to the hospital, Teito would follow behind, holding the tail of Frau's shirt like a frightened child. He chuckled lightly at the memory but stopped as soon as his head began throbbing painfully.

His sights moved to the IV sticking out from his arm. The bishop frowned; he didn't remember ever getting it put in. Without much care, he ripped the tiny hose out and threw it aside. As he clenched and unclenched his fist, a single thought began to drift through his mind: '_How long had I been asleep?_'

Satisfied that he had not just added more injuries to his already existing ones, Frau slipped one of his gloves off and ran his bare hand along his chin and cheeks. The length of the stubble growing seemed rather long for a couple hours.

At that moment, the door to his room opened and in walked a doctor accompanied by a female nurse. The doctor was flipping through pages on a clipboard as his assistant walked around him and straight to Frau. She frowned upon seeing the dripping IV that dangled from its stand instead of being inserted in Frau's arm.

"Bishop Frau, there is a reason we put you on an IV," she scolded as she began to clean up the mess the IV had made.

The bishop refrained from rolling his eyes; the thought of flirting with the nurse flew out the window as soon as she opened her mouth and scolded him with a whiny tone.

"It was bothering me." He gave a sideways glare as he slipped his glove back on. "Yo doc," he directed his attention to the man standing near the foot of his bed. "How long have I been here?"

"In three hours," the nurse began as she began fiddling with the IV stand, "it will be four days since you were admitted."

"F-," the blond blinked, his mind not comprehending, "four days?"

"We can't understand it. You just fell into a deep sleep, Frau-san." The nurse disposed of the IV bag into its proper wastebasket and turned to her patient. "There was no sigh of a coma, you were simply asleep. I came in here during the second day and had no luck waking you. Since there was nothing medically wrong with you, we only placed you on a nutrient-rich solution so you wouldn't wake malnourished. How are you feeling, by the way?"

Frau furrowed his eyebrows, eyes glaring slightly at the doctor by his bed. "My head is throbbing, I feel like I'm about to hurl and everything feels numb. When can I leave?"

"There will be no leaving, Frau-kun," the doctor finally spoke as he looked over his clipboard and to his patient. "There _is _something medically wrong with you. You lost a large amount of blood, an amount that would have killed anyone else. You've been in a coma-like state for four days, which had no explanation. Your body temperature and heart rate are drastically below normal levels but you seem to be functioning properly. Archbishop Jio was here trying to convince me that this was normal for you but somehow I doubt that. I want to keep you here and study this condition of yours. How you've lived this long," he shook his head, "it's all too strange."

"Nothing's wrong with me," Frau growled as he threw the blanket aside and stood. This was why he hated hospitals.

The nurse immediately stood in the bishop's path, looking frightened as she did so.

"Move," he warned once and the nurse did not give Frau a reason to glare as she moved quickly aside. He was about to leave the room when it was the doctor's turn to block his way. "Move, I said."

"Your threats will not work with me, Frau-kun. You _will_ stay here."

Frau's eye twitched. As he glared down at the half-pint moron in front of him, he wondered how much it would take to scare him. The doctor wasn't shaking, sweating or showing fear or anxiety in the slightest. Either this man wasn't intimidated by Frau or he was very good at hiding it.

When in doubt, use violence.

Slamming the doctor into the wall behind him, Frau grabbed the man's shirt and dragged him upwards along the wall until the doctor dangled centimeters off the ground.

"Care to repeat that?" The bishop glared.

"U-unhand me, you! How dare you-!"

Frau pulled back and pushed all his weight into slamming the doctor forcefully into the wall. The man grunted lightly as he wrapped his hands around Frau's wrists. He kicked out to Frau's chest and successfully forced the air out of the blond but did not cause him to weaken his hold. Frau growled as he repeatedly slammed the man into the wall, and once he bored himself of that, Frau threw him towards a pile of medical equipment at a side.

Satisfied, the blond proceeded out the door as quickly as possible, the nurse had called security.

x-x-x

After a much annoying talk (more like dispute) with the hospital receptionist to inquire where his stuff had been relocated from the room he had shared with Castor, Frau dragged himself off to his room. He desperately wanted a shower, but more importantly, he really, _really_ had to go to the bathroom. Being out for four days did that to a person.

Thankful for having a private bathroom in his room, while most had to use the communal showers, Frau was more than content to sprawl himself across his bed in nothing more than a towel around his waist. He gave a content sigh at how warm and fuzzy he felt, though the strange mixture of fatigue and vigor was rather killing his mood. He wasn't sure whether to take a nap or go out for a jog. The latter won.

Slipping on sweats, sneakers and a tee, he exited his room and stretched out his sore muscles as he made his way out to the courtyard. It was dark enough outside for most of the church's inhabitants to be turning in for the night but not late enough for the lamps around the church to be turned off.

He began his jog once he was well outside the church walls, focusing on his actions. Breath in, breath out. Breath in, breath out. Foot up, foot down.

Keep straight, move forward, never look back. That, he thought, could be applied to life as well. Not _his_ life, but someone's. Frau rather enjoyed _not_ keeping straight. He liked swerving off course just to check the scene.

Having had his sights on the ground, Frau raised his head and looked around. There was no one within sight, and it seemed fairly dark that no one would be able to see him anyway. With that thought in mind, Frau outstretched his arms and began curving in a rather odd path, all the while making airplane noises.

"_Vrrrrrrrr. Piuuu. Piuuu._"

He remembered when he used to do that as a child, then once again when he was a preteen. Though during his preteen years, he was in an actual fighter plane. He stopped his childish play and slowed to a walk, his head down. Frau kicked a decent sized pebble as he continued forward, the need for a jog near the back of his mind. Years now, he thought, so many years had passed and still no one had come to get him.

"Is that what you used to do as a child, Frau?"

Startled, Frau thought very little as he warmed some Zaphion into his hand and threw it towards the dark church wall, where he had heard the voice.

There was a blinding flash of light and a terrible roar as two Zaphions clashed. Once everything settled, whoever had spoken earlier began coughing a very wet and nasty sounding cough.

"Old man?" Frau asked once the Archbishop removed himself from the shadows.

The elder bishop patted down his robes, dust having settled on him when his Zaphion had crashed with the blond's.

"That term is rather disrespectful, isn't it?"

"You're old, aren't you? If anything, it's accurate."

Jio glared through a single eye. "Smart mouth."

"Wrinkles." Frau returned his glare.

"Whelp."

"Prehistoric fossil."

"Don't you need to go and change your diaper?"

"I can say the same thing about you."

"Youth is wasted on the young."

"And the elderly just need to hurry up and die. They're taking up space."

Jio opened his mouth to protest, thought it over, and considered that maybe the blond had a point. Either way, he folded his arms across his chest and watched as Frau mimicked.

"You've missed three weeks of Mass."

"Are we playing state the obvious, Cyclops?"

Jio's single eye opened widely, mortified at what he had just been called. Frau held eye-contact for a few moments before he began shifting his weight from one foot to the other, his eyes straying from anywhere but the elder bishop. Frau coughed.

"Okay, maybe I took that last one too far."

"Hmph," Jio frowned and returned to glaring.

"I take back the prehistoric fossil thing, I'm sure you're a youthful age of…" Frau trailed off and beckoned the white-haired priest to continue.

"Ninety-five." [1]

"Holy shit!" Frau slapped a hand over his mouth, his eyes betraying surprise. A strangled laugh escaped through his clamped mouth, then another before Frau finally removed his hand and just let his laughs come out as chuckles. "You could've lied, dude. I would've guessed seventy or something. Maybe even sixty. How are you still walking?"

"I get around fine, _dude_," Jio mimicked rather childishly, causing Frau to go through another round of chuckles. Annoyed, Jio advanced forward and smacked Frau upside the head, finally shutting him up. "Why were you gone so long?"

"For your information, I was _not _gone three-."

"Yes, you were! I know Castor's puppets when I see them."

"…fine, I was in the hospital! You should know, the doctor said you showed up."

"What I want to know is _why_ you were in the hospital in the first place!"

"Hey, Castor was in the hospital too! Why aren't you yelling at him?"

"He was released three days ago, and he isn't an incompetent bishop who lags at doing a simple chore! He has already caught up with his work and, for whatever reason I cannot fathom with, is helping with the work _you_," Jio stabbed a finger into Frau's chest "have neglected."

"And that's my fault?" Frau growled defensively.

"Yes! Castor won't speak to me about the cause for your injuries, Labrador avoids me all together!"

"Well, you do scare the kid-."

"Frau, take this seriously!"

"I am!"

"No you are not! As soon as they release you, what do I find you doing?"

"Have you been following me?"

"I find you running around the church like some immature child!"

"Can't a guy take a break? I was emitted into the hospital _twice_; both accounts were with serious injuries!"

"And who's fault was that?"

"Mine! I get it! _Everything_ is my fault!"

"Don't start acting like a child-."

"Stop treating me like one!"

"Grow up then!"

"Oh that's a rather mature thing to say."

"You are going to get yourself killed if you keep your reckless actions up!" The archbishop took hold of the blond bishop's shirt and shook him slightly.

Frau easily slapped the man's hands away and took a step back. "I'll hardly get killed. The _thing_ inside me very well won't allow it."

"There will come a time when it _will_." The elder bishop narrowed his eye, fists clenched tightly at his sides. "You are on borrowed time, Frau. Your soul should have crossed over but since it hasn't, if you die before fulfilling your duty to Zehel, your soul will be thrown at Verloren's mercy. And being the one who has stolen his scythe, I very well doubt he will take pity on your soul."

"…and who's the one who told me to steal it in the first place?" [2]

Jio looked taken aback, as if the blond had struck him without warning. "Do you think I would have _allowed_ it had I known the risks?"

"Well you very well aren't doing shit now to help me with it. I have to depend on Lab to keep the monster calm. I had to have Castor swear that he would kill me before I hurt anyone if I lost control of it."

"…you can control it! A true bishop can control such dangerous dark artifacts! If you just put in time to-!"

Frau bit his tongue as he glared at Jio, his eyes daring the man to continue. Jio took the hint and refrained from continuing, keeping Frau's glare as best as he could. He had never seen the blond look so…_feral_ before.

"You know what, fuck you," Frau spat as he pushed the archbishop to a side and began walking away.

"Don't you turn your back to me, Frau! Child, get back here, now!"

Frau raised his hand just over his shoulder so the elder bishop could see the vulgar hand sign the blond was making. Satisfied that the man had seen it, Frau took off running, continuing the rest of his jog in relative silence.

* * *

[1] I make no claim that this is true!

[2] Ditto above thought. It actually goes for those two paragraphs. I don't know _if_ Frau can die, and what might happen to him if he does. I just like making stuff up :)

**A/N: Team Frau or Team Jio? –rofl– I'm kidding! Kidding, kidding.**


	16. Heaven Hath Fire

**A/N: Characters will be OOC from this point on. You've been warned.**

* * *

**Chapter Sixteen**

**Heaven Hath Fire**

The Church Tower bell rang three times, indicating that afternoon Mass had ended and the children were _free_ to do as they wished. As they ran out screaming, shouting to their friends what games they wanted to play, a certain blond bishop was among the miniature crowd, practically jogging in time with them.

"Frau! _Bishop Frau! _Get back here!" Jio shouted as he ran out of the cathedral doors, trying to catch the blond before he disappeared.

A small boy beside Frau looked up to him and tugged at his bishop's robes.

"Au-chan," his speech slurred because of a missing tooth. "They calling yu!"

Frau grinned down to the boy and lifted him up into the air. It took one spin to excite the child and soon the entire crowd was around him, each squealing excitedly.

"Who's callin' me, huh junior?"

The boy giggled, not even thinking about the question.

"Bishop Frau! I'm speaking to you!"

"Hey! What do you kids want to play? You've got Brother Frau _all day_ today!"

They all shouted at once, each possessing an eager face. Frau placed the boy he was holding onto his shoulder and took off running, the children following him like excited ducklings. "Come on; let's go play hide-n-seek!"

"_Bishop Frau!_" Jio shouted one last time, knowing his attempts were futile.

A hand landed on the Archbishop's shoulder the elder man turned and found Castor behind him, a frown on his face.

"I need to speak with him, Castor."

"You need to leave him alone. Just another day," Castor felt like he was begging, and probably looked it, but he was an idiot when it came to protecting Frau. Why he did it, he wished someone would explain it to him.

The elder bishop looked about him, noticing they had attracted a small crowd.

"Let's talk elsewhere."

Jio turned back to the cathedral against the flow of the crowd. Castor followed right behind, spotted Labrador looking mildly confused within the crowd, grabbed the gardener by the wrist and dragged him along.

Somehow the archbishop was not surprised to see Labrador in tow when he opened the door leading to the church's empty prayer room. He closed the door behind the two bishops and spoke to it rather than face the other two.

"He told you, I presume, about our conversation two nights ago?"

"Actually, I had to force it out of him." Castor narrowed his sights on Labrador, who looked too nervous to be in that room. They were having a silent argument, using their eyes and hand gestures, as Castor continued to speak, "I had woken up earlier than normal, around two, yesterday and found him running around the church. I, Archbishop Jio, presume that you had interrupted his run when he started after his departure from the hospital, somewhere around nine? He had been running for five hours. That cannot be normal, for anyone."

Both bishops ceased their silent arguing as the Archbishop finally turned to face them.

"That boy had avoided me for an entire _day_. He is acting immaturely and I cannot allow it."

"You accused him of not trying to control Verloren's scythe!"

"He should be an adult and take it as criticism, not persecution!"

"Frau is _not_ an adult! You should understand that, Bastien understood!"

"Oh, do not drag the boy's past into this argu-."

"Archbishop-sama."

Both males turned to Labrador, who had interrupted. The man cowered slightly under the stare but instantly straightened himself. A glare in his eye as he held his superior's own glare.

"You know very well Frau arrived at this church more man than boy. And I am somewhat inclined to say that he might be…mentally unstable."

"You got that right," Jio grumbled as he turned away.

"I'm being serious!" Labrador turned to Castor, begging with his eyes for assistance.

"What Labrador is trying to say, Archbishop, is that all this…everything that has happened to him: his family, the Air Pirates, becoming a Ghost, forced to take upon Verloren's Scythe; it is certainly putting strain on him. He was forced to grow up too quickly. I cannot speak for Labrador, but I was allowed to have a childhood, I outgrew all of that at a normal rate and I certainly came out fine."

Labrador looked to the puppeteer from the corner of his eye. Castor glared in return.

"_Relatively_," he added.

"Why are we arguing about this?" Jio shook his head, wondering if he should just leave.

"…I don't know," Castor stole a glance towards Labrador, who rolled his eyes.

"I was _dragged_ here. Don't look to me for the answer."

"It's just," Castor removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm worried about Frau. Just, if you can, Archbishop, give him a little less responsibility. Just for a few days. Give the Nuns a break and let Frau take care of the children. He's very well gifted in Literature, strangely enough." He placed his glasses back on his nose and looked to the elder bishop, who was regarding him from the corner of his eye. "Perhaps he can teach them English."

"…" Jio looked away and frowned at the wall. "…I'll consider it. Now leave, you all have chores to do."

Without another word, Labrador and Castor escorted themselves out of the room and out the cathedral. Once they were outside, Labrador slapped Castor's chest.

"What was that?"

"Look, I panicked okay! Forgive me if I still possess human emotions."

"You didn't need to drag me along! I didn't even know that Frau was going through a mid-life crisis!"

"Well, for someone who didn't know, you certainly caught up quickly," Castor smiled and easily calmed the stressed gardener.

"I'm going to go do my chores," Labrador frowned slightly, lightly sulking at being used.

"Well, I've got to head to the hospital. Apparently, Frau assaulted a doctor."

Both bishops departed their separate ways, each wearing a smile at the stupidity that Frau was capable of. But it was a charming kind of stupidity.

If there ever existed such a thing.

x-x-x

Frau had played five rounds of hide-n-seek, two _very_ long rounds of freeze tag (there were so many kids and _he_ was the only one tagging!), and one round of "Restaurant", Frau's _favorite _game. The rules were simple: Frau was a customer at a fancy-shmancy restaurant and all the orphans were the cooks and waiters of that amazing restaurant. They would be given the honor of making so many delicious foods, as well as getting to act like grown-ups. Sure, he was taking advantage of them. But one couldn't consider it "taking advantage of" if the kids were happy. And they were freaking happy! They would scurry off to the kitchen and bring back fruits, nuts, crackers and even some jam.

Frau, however many believe, was _not_ inconsiderate. He let the kids have some of the food they brought over too. They ate to their little stomach's desire.

So as he lay under the lazy sun with some of the younger children who had fallen asleep for a nap, he wondered why exactly he was acting the way he was. Avoiding Jio. That wasn't like him. If anything, it was the complete opposite. He would have confronted the old-fart and told him exactly what was on his mind. But there he was, using children as his own personal shield.

One thing, he knew, that was causing some of the irritation was the fact that he had not seen Teito at all. All day yesterday, he went looking around for the brat but couldn't find him. And Hakuren was always too busy to be bothered.

"Kid needs more friends," Frau spoke to himself as he shifted a bit to rest more comfortably on the soft grass.

He was close to drifting off to sleep, what with the soft swaying grass underneath him, the light aroma of clean air and flowers, the warm sun and the cool wind. But something didn't feel quite right. Frau sat up and looked about. The church looked as it always did, calm and peaceful. Even the sky was a soft blue, clearer than he had ever seen it. He twisted himself around, not being able to move his legs as they were currently being used as pillows, to the children playing some ways away.

"Hey!" He immediately caught the attention of a boy close enough to hear. "Tell everyone to go to the Mess Hall. Tell Sister Elaine that Bishop Frau thinks there's something wrong and to keep an eye on all of you."

The boy nodded and called out to his friends, telling them exactly what Frau told him.

"Help me take some of these kids," he requested to some of the older children. "Don't worry, it's probably just me being weird," he smiled to calm their worried faces.

Stirring the sleeping kids up, he watched the group of children make their way across the courtyard, half of them running. Until they disappeared into the Mess Hall, Frau did not look away. Now that they were relatively safe, he stood to his feet and began walking towards the church walls. It was just his imagination, his paranoia. Maybe it was just a way for him to get rid of the kids. But then why couldn't Frau shake off that bad feeling?

Shattering the calm scene all too suddenly, the church bell began sounding loudly. The noise vibrated through the very earth, causing all to cease in their various activities and turn to its origin high above in the bell tower. It was not the hour for the bell to ring and all wondered what it could possibly mean.

From the tower, a single person could be seen stretching out into the open. The figure waved a single arm hectically, as if trying to gather everyone's attention. Frau narrowed his eyes; the man did not seem like a jumper so there was virtually no reason for him to be acting so erratically.

As if everyone wished to hear what the figure was shouting, whether they were near or not, silence descended upon the church courtyard; the bell had stopped ringing. Even from a distance, it could be seen that the man had already begun to shout. The people closer to the tower turned to each other, skepticism upon their faces. Frau studied the rest of the crowd; they ranged from disbelief to fearful. Slowly, the crowds' mumbles turned into chatter which turned into yells.

"_Military soldiers are approaching the church walls!"_

Within seconds, the bell tower was engulfed in flames and crumbled down to earth in a horrible explosion. The bell, free from its restraints, crashed into the ground in a loud final ring that announced the arrival of the opposing force. The crowds soon began shouting, panicking. People raced around in circles, trampling over the weak and defenseless. Another explosion echoed and soon the sound of rapid gunfire followed.

Frau's usually slow and stable heart began to beat rapidly; his eyes darted back and forth, truly not understanding the situation.

"Frau!"

At the sound of his name, the blond turned to find Labrador racing towards him, fear clear in his soft lilac eyes. The small male opened his mouth and shouted again but the sound was overpowered by an even louder noise.

Frau watched as the ground by Labrador's feet imploded as if randomly. Debris, fire and dust erupted into the air, engulfing all that were feet within the blast.

"Lab!" Frau shouted once realization kicked in with brutal force. He rushed towards the cloud of dust and scrambled about the multiple scorched bodies until he found the one he was searching for.

Throwing himself to the ground, Frau gathered the small male into his arms, terrified at how limp he seemed to be but somewhat grateful that he wasn't burned like the rest. He must have been able to shield himself from most of the blast, Frau thought bitterly. He shook the other lightly, moving the shaggy lilac bangs away from Labrador's face. Blood trickled down from the gardener's hairline and from the corners of his eyes.

"Lab, Lab! Come on, buddy. Wake up, come on," he shouted over the chaos, fear poisoning his usually calm tone.

Slowly, as if just waking up from a long, deep sleep, Labrador opened his eyes. He blinked slowly at first, then rapidly. Fear distorted his face as he reached up and gripped Frau tightly by his clothing. He darted his eyes all around him and finally landed them on Frau. Blood-tainted tears began streaming down from Labrador's milky white eyes.

"I…I can't see. I can't… F-Frau?"

"Lab, Lab, you're going to be alright, you're going to be alright. J-just-."

"Why can't I see?" The gardener ripped his hands from Frau's robe and placed them over his eyes. He pressed his palms firmly into his eyes and immediately he began writhing in pain, screaming as he continued to work his healing Zaphion on himself. He soon ripped his hands away and blinked away the blood that began accumulating. He relaxed suddenly, eye-lids half open as he watched the graying sky.

"Lab?" Frau shook the male and bit back whatever emotion was struggling to force itself out as he stared into Labrador's milky white eyes.

The gardener pushed away the blond and stood to his feet. Reaching behind him, he stripped off his bishop's robe. He discarded the item to a side of him and looked about the massacre around him rather nonchalantly.

"Eleven dead people I could not protect," the small male replied with a casual tone, as if speaking of the weather. He turned his scarred eyes towards Frau, who had taken that opportunity to stand. "I can relatively see now, do not worry about me. Evacuate the premises, Frau."

The blond was speechless as Labrador gave him orders with a cold, calculating voice he never thought the male was possible of having. And now with his eyes bearing no color, they seemed lifeless and cruel.

"No," the blond replied, finally finding himself, "You're injured, you go do that while I-."

"Do not be an idiot, Frau! What good is an injured man protecting a herd of people? Now go! Go find Archbishop Jio!"

"What does that man have to do wi-?"

"It's the last thing I was able to 'see', now go! You need to go find him! I'll help the other bishops hold off this attack as long as possible, _GO_!"

Frau watched as the usually calm and kind bishop ran head long into the invading soldiers that had managed to break through the outer wall.

Labrador conjured a shield once the soldiers began firing their weapons. Once he was near enough, he weaved into the center of them with feline grace. The men refrained from firing, afraid they would hit one of their own. Taking advantage of his, Labrador ripped a weapon from a nearby soldier and discharged all its ammunition to anyone near him. Blood splattered all around, causing another situation to take advantage of. While the military men were distracted, he weaved through them, using the empty weapon as a club. Hitting them right at the base of the neck, they crumbled over. He caught one man around the neck, the cold metal of the gun pressing tightly against his throat. The man choked and struggled against the restraint but soon he was being filled with bullet holes from friendly fire. Labrador discarded the man once his usefulness ran out and ran at another once he snatched another gun.

Clenching his teeth, Frau ran from the sight, stripping away his own bulky bishop garbs. Shouts, screams, wails, explosions and gunfire filled the smoky air. As he passed crowds of screaming people, he directed – more like shouted – at them to go towards the underground storage area. He picked up discarded children and shoved them, harshly, into the arms of anyone making their escape. How these people could call themselves Children of God and yet leave behind children to be trampled upon, it disgusted him. In the face of danger does a man's true nature reveal itself. Frau had seen more women with the sacrificing, protective nature that should be only be a man's burden to carry.

As he raced through the madness, Frau wondered how he would ever find Jio. He could already be dead, for all he knew. No, Frau shook his head. He couldn't think that way. The church needed the old man, now more than ever. They needed his guidance, his leadership. He was the rare combination of stern commander and gentle father.

"Haku!" Frau shouted once he caught sight of the long-haired blond who struggled to remove fallen debris from a nearby building off a man.

"Bishop Frau!" Hakuren shouted once he caught sight of the man who had shouted his name. "Please, help-!"

Frau threw himself onto the piece of stone and pushed all his weight into it. The rock scraped against his shoulder, ripping the material of his coat. He continued to push as the burning pain of his skin being scraped off flared along his shoulder. Finally, the crumbled stone rolled over enough for the younger blond to remove the trapped man.

"Can you take him on your own?"

Hakuren nodded, placing the man's arm around his neck.

"Have you seen Archbishop Jio?" Frau asked next.

"He was near the cathedral, I think," the teen replied rather out of breath.

"And Teito?"

"I haven't seen him." Hakuren refrained himself from adding: '_not since you were re-admitted into the hospital_'. Somehow, he believed it was something the blond did not need to hear at that moment.

"Alright, I want you to stay with everyone underground." Frau saw that the boy was ready to protest but cut him off before he even had the opportunity to suck in breath to speak. "If some soldiers manage to slip by us, I want someone competent down there that can protect them, alright?"

Hakuren nodded, reluctantly, and began dragging the injured man across the courtyard.

Frau watched them go and immediately his sights fell upon three soldiers coming up behind them. Running on pure instinct, Frau's hand began burning furiously as he threw a wave of burning Zaphion upon the military men. They screamed in agony as their skin melted off, their weapons began exploding in their hands. Both bishops managed a shield to protect them from the blast. Once the excitement subsided a bit, Hakuren released his shield and prompted the man he was carrying to hurry it along; he was more than happy to do so.

x-x-x

Once reaching the hallway that lead to the storage area, Hakuren directed the man to use the wall as support and drag himself to the end of it. He reassured the man that there should be some bishops stationed outside that will help him inside.

Without bothering to confirm that the man was going to be alright, Hakuren turned tail and ran back the way he came. He had seen a lone figure struggling to drag herself across the rubble that littered the courtyard. And he recognized that figure, even from a distance.

Once arriving outside, he scanned the area until he caught sight of that soft pink hair. He raced down the steps he was currently on and jumped the last five, breaking into a run once his feet hit ground. He struggled slightly to regain his balance but was soon sprinting around the craters.

Once he reached her, Hakuren stripped off his coat and placed it around Razette's scaly skin. The girl smiled softly at the familiar face and held onto the white coat with shaking hands.

"Can you walk?" He asked and received a head nod in reply.

Razette assisted him as much as she could as Hakuren supported most of her weight, half-carrying her towards their only shelter.

From the corner of his eye, he watched the mermaid wince at every step she took.

"Are you injured?"

Razette shook her head and smiled, though the smile seemed rather strained. Something told Hakuren that the girl was lying but he did not call her on it. If it was a serious injury, she would have 'said' something. It must have been a minor injury then.

Once their destination was a few feet away, the mermaid began stumbling more and more. Two novice bishops stood outside the trap door that led into the storage area. Upon seeing Hakuren, they moved aside and opened the door. Both bishop and mermaid stumbled down the wooden steps but luckily they did not fall. The doors above them closed and darkness engulfed them for a moment before their eyes adjusted to the minimal light created by burning oil lamps.

The storage area, easily larger than the Cathedral that could house over five thousand people, was packed tightly with civilians. There was a soft murmur of crying along with the occasional loud outburst by young children who could not find comfort in stranger's voices.

Finding a spot near a wall, which was at the far end of the stairs, Hakuren rested Razette against the cold stone wall. Her sing-song voice trembled as she gave the notes that the blond had come to recognize as a "thank you".

"I'll be right back," he told her before taking a step towards the large crowd. He called out Teito's name, repeatedly, which caused a chorus of others to suddenly start calling out to their loved ones. Ignoring the chaos he had just made, Hakuren continued to shout his friends name, unable to find him in the massive crowd.

Above them, a loud explosion shook the foundations, causing everyone to quiet down. A small amount of dust fell from the rafters but everything remained as it was. Not wanting to cause a scene like that again, Hakuren refrained from calling out Teito's name. The brunet should have heard him when he yelled it the first time, what with it being so quiet. Unless, Teito was unconscious somewhere in that heap.

Liking that thought better than the idea that his friend could very well be dead, the long-haired blond made his way back to Razette and sat in front of her. She was breathing heavily, as if struggling for breath.

"Do you need water?" He asked. She was a mermaid, it made sense.

But Razette shook her head, again smiling that sad smile. She moved her arm that was pressed against her side and slipped out the hand that was pressed there as well. Even in the minimal light, Hakuren could make the distinct dark color of blood on his coat and on Lazet's webbed hand.

x-x-x

Taking full flight towards the Cathedral, Frau was forced to stop when the sight of soldiers overpowering a group of bishops caught his eyes. He picked up a bloodied bascule off the ground from the midst of carnage and raced towards the scene.

The holy weapon became a barbaric instrument as he bashed heads in with it. The bishops were too close to use it properly. As if his body began remembering of what it used to do before he was brought to the church, Frau attacked the soldiers with close-range Zaphion and fists. Once their numbers depleted, he raced towards the Cathedral again, this time, not bothering to stop.

He jumped over the busted waterway, his boots splashing on the water that had spill out onto the courtyard. From a distance, he caught sight of the aged priest as he struggled to pull out buried victims from the wreckage that was once the Cathedral pike.

Out of breath and muscles aching, Frau was ready to shout out to the Archbishop when a sharp blast echoed through the sky. He watched with blue-hues as a flaming ball rocketed through the smoky sky and crash into what remained of the Cathedral. The explosion was loud; it caused all the windows to shatter before the entire structure crumbled down towards the ground.

In an attempt to rescue a young boy, Archbishop Jio grabbed the boy and threw him as far as his aged body allowed. Rubble fell upon him in a heap, trapping him from his shoulders to his legs. The boy turned in place and scurried on hands and feet away from the scene, his eyes streaming tears.

After finally regaining control of his legs, Frau sprinted forward and caught the child by the hem of his shirt, tugging him out of the way from the falling debris.

"Get to the storage area, now!"

The child followed orders without complaint.

Once reaching the Archbishop, Frau desperately tried to remove the wreckage from atop the aged man. Jio was breathing heavily, blood spilling from his mouth, nose and gashes along his cheeks. He wrapped his fingers around the blond's ankle in a weak hold. Frau slowed in his actions and looked down to the man.

"G-get down here, boy," the man struggled to say. He released his hold on Frau; it took too much energy to do.

Frau got down on his hands and knees. "Old man, come on. I've got to get you out of here."

"N-no. T-this is m-my end, Frau." Every word he spoke more blood spilled out.

"Don't talk like that! You've got to live. Who's going to put faith and hope back into these people once this is all over?"

"You are," the man replied, his eye closing.

With the little strength he had left, he slipped off the chain that had hung heavily around his neck for decades. He raised the golden cross up to Frau, or at least tried. His hand shook terribly as he did so, the metal too heavy for his limp arm to carry. Jio opened his single eye and smiled sadly towards Frau.

"It was meant…to go to you…all along." Jio's arm went limp and crashed into the ground but he did not release his hold on the chain.

"N-no, no! You never went a day without telling me what an incompetent bishop I am! You can't just turn around and to this, ya damn old geezer! I'm getting you out of here and _you_ can do all that gross stuff with telling people about God and shit!" Frau stood and struggled to lift the crumbled stone from atop the man. "I'm not doing it! I hate God! I hate him, I hate him, I fucking _hate_ him!"

"That's why…it has to be you." Jio forced down a strangled cry, blood practically gushing out from his tightly sealed lips. Swallowing some of that liquid, he allowed the rest to spill out of his mouth as he continued. "The bishops here, they were ra-raised loving God. They remain here because they enjoy serving him. Y-you, however, I c-c-cannot fathom why y-you remain if you despise the Ch-ch-chief of H-h-h," he sighed "God. Y-you are not here for G-God, but his p-people. Y-you may d-deny it, boy, but it…is plain as day. You love the…the people of this church. You will protect them…you w…will do everything in your power to s-save them. Someone like that n-needs to be Archbishop. In the end, positions like these always go to the one wh-who wants it the least…" Jio sighed and closed his eyes, his fingers slowly uncurling from around the golden chain.

Frau remained still for a moment, eyes on the white-haired man. He shook his head, disbelieving it. "Old man," he called but received no response. "Old man!" he shouted more forcefully. Still, nothing. His attention turned back to the rubble in his way, struggling to remove it. He knew, Frau knew, he was wasting time trying to remove the boulder but he continued to do so. It was all he could do at the moment.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," he whispered harshly as his eyes stung. He forced them shut, shaking his head as he continued to move the impossibly heavy debris. "No, no…"

"_They broke through our first line of defense!"_

"_They're advancing too quickly!"_

"_Help! Someone!"_

Frau's eyes flashed open. Without casting a glance towards the dead man, the blond snatched the bloodied chain and placed it on his neck. The metal weighed heavily but he had no time to ponder it. Picking up a discarded bascule, he advanced towards the carnage, shoulders squared and eyes cold.

From the corner of his eye, the blond caught sight of a bishop approaching him at running speed. He halted for a moment before his façade slowly slipped away. It was Castor, looking worse for wear.

"Frau!" the man panted once he was well within hearing range. "W-where are all the civilians?"

"Where have you been?" Frau asked before he knew why he had.

"I-I was evacuating the people in the hospital. I just, I…I can't find Razette. D-do you know where she is? I c-can't find… The channel caved in and I can't find-."

Castor's brown hues shot open and his gloved hand immediately flew over his mouth. Blood seeped through the cracks in his fingers and spilled down his arm until it accumulated on the sleeve of his shirt. He winced painfully, his bloodied hand falling to the fabric over his heart. He clenched the white material tightly, his face scrunched up in agony. The puppeteer dropped to his knees, blood spilling from the cracks of his tightly clenched teeth.

"Castor!" Frau dropped right along side him, placing a hand on the russet's back. "What's wrong?"

"It fucking hurts…," he hissed, slightly choking on the accumulating blood in his mouth. "It just…really hurts. I don't know-."

Castor's eyes shot open, the sound of string snapping ringing loudly in his ears. He opened his mouth and allowed the blood to slip out, noticing that the uncontrollable bleeding had stopped all too suddenly.

"W-where a-are the civilians being hidden?"

"Underground storage area," Frau replied without hesitation.

Castor stood and ran off without another word. Frau watched, head throbbing painfully, as Castor's receding form disappeared into the crumbling building. Somehow, the blond understood what had just happened.

But he had no time for Castor's trouble.

Taking the bascule back in hand, Frau ran back into battle.

x-x-x

"Get out of my way!"

The bishops standing guard practically fled their posts at the crazed rage Castor was emitting. Dashing down the stairs, Castor startled everyone hiding underground. He paid them no mind as his eyes dashed all around. He thought it would be simple to find Razette, what with her bright aura in the midst of dingy colors. But it was as if he was blind to her. He couldn't find her. Then a thought struck him. What if she _had_ been trapped in the collapsed channel after all?

Just as he was about to turn around and head back up, someone called out to him. He followed the voice and was surprised to see Hakuren, looking like he was ready to start crying. At that moment, Castor did not believe that the reason for the blond's grievous look was related to him, so he glared at the child and stalked rather menacingly towards him.

"What, what? I don't have all day; I need to find Lazet-."

"I'm sorry," Hakuren forced himself to speak through a closing throat. He found he couldn't look into the russet's eyes. He screwed his eyes shut and repeated himself. Shaking his blond head, he repeated it again. He fisted his hands and said it again. He rubbed his eyes vigorously with his fisted hands and said it once more.

"What are you talking-?" Castor trailed off as he watched Hakuren step aside, revealing Razette slumped against the wall, a small puddle of blood around her. His eyes widened in fear. He turned to Hakuren who clearly had Razette's bloody handprint on his cheek. "What…what happened?"

Not bothering to hear the response, Castor fought his way through the sitting crowd before taking Hakuren's previous space. His eyes watered, obscuring his vision of Razette, who appeared doll-like, still. His hands reached out to her, shaking, but he stopped himself short. He couldn't touch her. He didn't want to. Would he really be able to drag himself out of the hole he was falling into if he confirmed her absence of soul? She had died once and dying again meant that her soul was forcefully taken from her overused body. He couldn't get her back. He lost her, forever.

Tears streamed down his face as he turned his sight to the ground, allowing his shaggy hair to slightly obscure him from vision. There was another loud explosion above but this time, it was followed by strangled cries from the bishops at post. The cellar doors were thrown open and a pair of soldiers baring weapons descended down the stairs. The people began to scream, shout, panic. Babies and small children began crying and the bishops inside raised their own weapons.

Anger clouded his sadness and Castor allowed it. He had just discovered that the love of his life was stolen from him, permanently, and those soldiers had the audacity to storm in and cause such a ruckus when he was trying to properly mourn her? That wouldn't do, at all.

"All of you, put down your weapons," Castor stood to his feet, sight on Lazet's calm face. She looked like she was just sleeping. Sleeping peacefully.

The few bishops there followed orders, giving each other skeptical looks.

"I said, _all of you_," Castor repeated, turning to meet eyes with the intruders.

The two men laughed and continued to have their weapons raised. As if pushed by some unseen force, one of the men flew up and out of the cellar door, crashing harshly against the adjacent wall. The other, clearly startled, turned to see his comrade crumpled on the ground, twitching. His mouth hung open for a moment before he composed himself and pointed his weapon towards the senior bishop.

Castor removed his eyewear and folded it neatly, frowning as he noticed the break in the right lens. Looking as if he did not care, the puppeteer dropped the glasses onto the ground and stepped on them as he proceeded forward. The military man was ready to pull the trigger to his weapon when it suddenly flew out of his hands and towards a bishop nearby. The lad caught the weapon and stared at it, mouth agape.

Ever so casually, the russet raised his hands at chest level, as if surrendering, but the crowd watched as the second soldier was thrown out of the room like the first. Castor followed him up the stairs and closed the doors behind him. After that, the crowd below could hear ear-splitting screams just outside the doors.

x-x-x

"Lab!"

Taking the small bishop by the back hem of his coat, Frau pulled harshly. Both male stumbled backwards and fell, one on top of another, as a blast of Zaphion missed them by centimeters.

"Fuck! When did the guys with Zaphion show up?" Frau growled.

"We've best flank out towards the eastern wall," the violet-haired man whispered harshly, clearly out of breath. He rubbed his throat, the collar of his coat choking him slightly. "The bishops will be thinned out in the center but I'm sure we'll be able to handle it. We've got to stop them from advancing further."

Frau grunted, focusing a sharp cutting Zaphion towards the soldier that had attempted to kill them. It pierced through his chest and imploded, leaving a visible hole. The man doubled over and fell to the ground, sprawled as if he was hugging the floor.

"Take the western troops and start encircling them." Frau wrapped an arm around Labrador's waist and hauled him, along with himself, up. "We've got to drive them out by sunset."

"I do not believe…" placing a hand on the arm around his waist, the gardener pushed it away gently as he pointed towards a commotion that had caught his attention "I will be needed on the Western Front."

Curious, Frau turned to the spot where Labrador was pointing at.

From a distance, a single figure could be seen keeping entertained a good number of soldiers. A large ring had formed around the man and it seemed that the soldiers were having a difficult time penetrating it. Some would rush in only to be thrown back as if blasted by some undetectable force. Others fired their weapons only to have the figure dodge them with incredible ease, the stray bullets finding home amongst other military men.

"Is that…?" Frau began but could not finish as a blast echoed loudly somewhere beside him. The explosion caused his ears to ring loudly, his mind fogging and vision blurred.

"Fuck! Lab, head towards the Eastern Front," he placed a gloved hand over his ear and pounded against his skull. "Take those three bishops over there with you. I'll stay here."

"Yes, sir." Labrador took off running, reaching down to pick up a discarded bascule as he did so.

"Lawrence, Aaron!" Frau called out to the bishops just a distance from him. "Move!"

Straining the bascule in hand with an amount of power that it was not created to withstand, Frau accumulated a ball of Zaphion at the tip of the weapon. The energy sparked and sizzled, clearly an unstable ball of pure energy. Frau was thrown back and would have fallen had he not taken a step back and plated his foot firmly on the ground. The shock of discharging the Zaphion rattled the bascule and effectively turned it into shards of broken stone.

Frau's attack landed just feet from a platoon of incoming soldiers, blasting a few them into the air while the rest where thrown back by the force. The blond stole Lawrence's bascule and ran into the cloud of dust. He was ready to begin bashing peoples' heads in with the bascule when the men began scrambling about. Frau managed to take down three when he realized he was chasing after them rather than fighting them.

Climbing the outer wall, or what was left of it, Frau looked out over the barren land. It was true; the soldiers were retreating. It was too strange for them to do such a thing. The military easily outnumbered their clergy, or the clergy that could and would fight anyways. And the remaining bishops were spread out thin. If the troops were given a decent battle plan, they could have easily overpowered the church. Something was off, something wasn't right.

"Can someone please tell me what the fuck is going on?" Frau growled as he threw the bascule onto the ground.

He glared at the retreating enemy, keen on chasing after them. But his sights landed on that lone figure near the Western Front doing just that. Quickly, Frau jumped down from the crumbling wall and raced down the desolate slope. The loose soil caused any sort of traction to be impossible so the blond skidded down until the dirt hardened. Finally gaining ground, he dashed towards the puppeteer, tackling him to the ground once he was well within reach.

The man had hardly a scratch on him but he was splattered with blood; his eyes were crazed and his breathing erratic. He clawed against the ground, desperately trying to get away. Throwing his head back, he managed to knock into Frau's chin as the blond tried to pin Castor's arms behind his back. Frau fell over, gloved hand on his jaw. Castor took that opening and dashed forward but with his ankle caught in Frau's grip; he walked two steps before crashing to the ground again.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Frau growled, a hand still on his aching jaw.

"They've got to pay," Castor released a lungful of air, causing the fine earth beneath him to stir. His rusty-brown eyes appeared almost red as he continued to claw at the ground. "They have to suffer for what they did!"

Raising himself to his knees, the russet threw his hands upward and slammed them down to the ground. Without reason, three soldiers at the back of the retreating brigade mimicked the actions of Castor's hands. As they slammed into the ground, a group of military men noticed the phenomenon occurring and advanced to aid their comrades. Castor grinned; as if pulling on an invisible line tied around the men, they were dragged across the ground towards the two bishops.

At the sight, Frau released the russet and stood, preparing himself for the fight to come. But instead watched the men turn tail and retreat, leaving their comrades to the seemingly insane bishops.

Castor growled, his eyes narrowing at the scared mortals. Standing to his feet, he approached the men he had captured, watching with predator-like excitement as they squirmed and struggled against invisible restraints.

"Castor, don't!" Frau clenched his fists. He would be lying if the image Castor was portraying didn't frighten him slightly.

The puppeteer halted, looking over his shoulder to the blond. He glared, not bothering to hide the irritation on his face. Without his glasses, he seemed like a complete stranger.

"I do not recall that I have a need to take orders from you, _Zehel_."

"Shut your fucking mouth," Frau growled, equally glaring. "Don't you ever call me that."

"Or what?" The man threw his head back and laughed. He sighed contently before turning back around to stare down the blond. "You can do _nothing_ against me. That's your one flaw. You befriend and care about people so easily that you just can't get rid of them when it is required of you to do so. That's why your family had to suffer the way they did."

Frau flinched at the accusation, causing a content smirk to distort Castor's features.

"You," Frau growled, his right arm shaking visibly, "don't you dare bring that shit up. I will warn you this once, you bring that up again and I'll cut your head off." He gripped his arm tightly, trying his best to control the twitching.

"Aw, little Frau-kun does not want to remember the weak little boy he used to be? Tell me, Frau, was it difficult? To kill your own mother and father in cold blood? To have their lifeless eyes watch you as you ruthlessly finished off their little daughter? Tell me, did you find a thrill-."

"Shut it!"

"When you pointed a gun-?"

"I said shut up!"

"To her head-?"

"Utter one more word; utter one more word, and I swear-!"

"And fired a full round of bullets? Must have been excit-."

Frau threw himself towards Castor, effectively knocking the man down. He threw a punch, landing it square on the russet's cheek. Blood splattered on the ground, streaming evenly from Castor's mouth. The puppeteer spat aside, glaring eyes turned to Frau. He was ready to strike but the blond was quicker, catching his fist and bending it backwards until there was an audible snap. Castor yelled in pain, his other hand flying towards Frau's neck but that one was easily blocked as well.

"I'll break your other wrist, I swear I will. Let them go. Let them go!"

"I-I'll let them go…"

The russet slowly opened his fist and Frau watched as the soldiers began to scramble to their feet. As he began to move himself off of the puppeteer, he caught sight of Castor's manipulative Zaphion still attached to the men. Turning wide blues down to him, Frau watched as a malicious grin spread across the russet's features.

Closing his fist, the combined sound of ripping, breaking and bones popping out of their sockets echoed through the quiet scene; the men were ripped apart, limb by limb. Gripping the collar of Castor's coat, Frau glared down and hauled the doll-maker's carcass up. Castor chuckled once and soon he was shaking with suppressed laughter as Frau growled, baring teeth like a wild dog.

"You didn't have to-."

"I had to, Frau," the male's tone dropped into something predatory, his psychotic laughter before gone, "You know very well this feeling I have: the uncontrollable urge to make the appropriate party suffer. I need to, I _need_ to, slaughter. If I don't, I'll have to face the fact that she's no longer here. Can't give a dead man his final wish? You would have done the same had I not beaten you to it."

And the sad truth was Castor was right. Frau's shoulders slumped, his hold on the russet diminishing. Finally being able to plant his feet on the ground, Castor took a step back from the blond and watched as those hands just fell and smacked against Frau's sides. A foul, bitter guilt began crushing Castor's chest, making breathing difficult. He realized at that moment, he had perhaps gone too far with his taunting. Slowly, he began to realize that he had perhaps taken everything a bit too far. His bloodlust was gone, his adrenaline below zero. Realization was a very ugly thing.

"Frau, I did not mean to bring up your past like that."

And he sincerely meant it, though the glare he received in return informed him that Frau did not believe the apology to be true. Just as he was about to reassure the blond that it was the truth, the sound of fast approaching footsteps caught his attention. He looked away from the blond just in time to see a fist flying towards him. Once more, he was punched in the same cheek. Castor flew with the momentum and crashed into the ground, further injuring his broken wrist.

"Fuck!" He cursed into the ground as he writhed in pain.

"You barbaric sorry excuse for a human being!"

Labrador, who had finally decided to join the fight, was prepared to fling himself onto the puppeteer but was stopped by a hand clamping down on his arm. Labrador twisted to find Frau holding him back. Growling, he forcefully tried to pry Frau's fingers from around his arm but failed at doing so.

"Let me go!" Labrador threw a punch he knew very well, Ghost powers or not, would not land on Frau.

Surprised was he when his fist actually crashed into Frau's cheek. The blond was sturdy enough to take the hit, earning Labrador a very injured fist. He shook his hand vigorously, as if to shake off the pain. Frau fiddled with his teeth and ripped out a loose molar, flicking it out to the barren land.

"Shit, that stung," he rubbed his sore jaw. He had had enough bruising for one day.

"I apologize, Frau," Labrador mumbled as soon as he was released. He kept his sights to his injured fist and massaged his knuckles lightly, wondering why it had suddenly pained so much when practically the whole day he had been throwing punches.

"'Pology not accepted. S'not your fault. Can you walk, Castor?"

The russet nodded curtly, bringing himself to his feet. He staggered about in no real direction, forcing Frau to grab him by the arm and direct him towards church grounds. Labrador followed along side Castor, his Zaphion working on his injured wrist. After snapping it back in place, the rest was simple.

x-x-x

The trio stood in front of a roaring flame, their demeanor cold and uncaring. More fuel was added to the fire and it burned an awful stench into the air.

"How many was that?" Frau asked Labrador beside him.

"Two hundred and three."

"No, that was two hundred and four." Castor sat himself on the ground, eyes glaring down to a doll he was stitching back together. He growled at how the doll's black eyes seemed to mock him. "The last woman was pregnant. Two hundred and four deceased."

"Maybe we should stop for today," Frau turned his sights to the bishops responsible of disposing the bodies. Even if they were not acquainted with any of the deceased, it still had to be difficult doing such a task.

"The quicker we dispose of the deceased, the lower chance of disease spreading. We'll be forced to live in unsanitary conditions for approximately four weeks, it is best to rid ourselves of any potential element that will attract unwanted illness," Labrador replied, all calculating cold hard facts.

"But wouldn't some of these people want to bury their loved ones?" Frau turned to the area where the District Seven citizens wailed and cried for their loved ones currently being burned to ash.

"We don't have time for that," Castor growled, stabbing himself with the needle as his hands fumbled. "Shit!" he screamed, throwing the rag doll into the burning flames. "Besides," the man sighed, reclining on his elbows as he stretched out his legs, "we buried Jio. That's all that matters."

Frau was about to ask 'what about Razette?' but refrained. When he had brought her up the puppeteer looked like he was ready to strip someone of their skin. He sighed and joined Castor on the ground. The only reason he and the other two had nothing to do was because they weren't allowed to do anything. Most of the bishops were asked to refrain from doing any of the work other people were doing, such as: finding food, timber, blankets, tents, clean water and anything else that might be useful, collecting the deceased and aiding the civilians in reuniting them with their lost families. The bishops had done their part to keep the enemy at bay; it was everyone else's turn to pick up their share of the work. But in reality, it was basically the Nuns and novice Bishops that were doing that work. Everyone else was selfishly wasting time to mourn their lost loved ones. They didn't understand that everyone had lost someone, even parts of themselves.

"Archbishop Frau."

Sapphire hues trailed up to catch with amethyst.

"Whadda need, Haku?" He asked the blond teen.

Hakuren looked down to a clipboard in hand, his demeanor as distant as the three bishops before him.

"Since the attack was mostly on the southeastern side, the hospital is practically undamaged. I have just confirmed that there is enough room for its earlier patients, the seriously injured and a bit more room for any civilians. We also have two housing units that were practically undamaged as well. I wanted to ask how will we choose who will be able to stay within the hospital and housing units. We don't have room for everyone, even considering…" the blond trailed off, not wanting to be the one to inform them of the estimated body count so far.

Frau sighed. He had been asked stupid questions like this since word spread that with his dying breath, Jio had made him Archbishop. He hated it, putting it lightly.

Lowering his head, he scratched at his matted blond hair before turning his sights back to Hakuren. The boy was only trying to make things easier for him, Frau thought.

"Well, if those stupid arrogant doctors and nurses will allow it, have the injured peoples' family bunk with them in the rooms. No use wasting perfectly good space. If not, then give priority to the elderly and young. From eight years-."

"Make it one," Castor butted in as he drew random scribbles on the ground.

"…Fine. Expecting and new mothers with their children, from one year and below. Elderly, from eighty and above. If problems come up, just use your better judgment. If you can't decide then come find me, I guess."

"I'll do that as a last resort," Hakuren bowed respectfully and retreated.

The three were left alone once more, a bitter not-so-silent silence falling over them. Labrador, hating the fact that he was the only one left standing, sat himself on the ground. He fiddled with his torn coat sleeve before speaking, just to break the silence than really wanting to start conversation.

"Hakuren-kun seems to be taking all this maturely."

"Somehow," Frau mumbled, "I don't see that as a good thing."

"Kid's breaking down inside," Castor glared out into the burning fire, wondering if the stench of death would ever be able to wash off.

Blue and white eyes turned to him, questioning. Upon seeing their puzzled faces, Castor sighed. "Honestly. We are doing the exact same thing he is doing. We are hiding behind a cold, calculating façade, hoping against hope that no one will notice or notice enough to know better than to ask. And I doubt that we are all puppies and sunshine at the moment, so it is no use denying it. One truly has to be cold-hearted to not allow a scene like this affect them."

"Why did they attack though?"

"Do you really need to ask, Frau?" Castor sat up, eyes on the blond.

Looking away, Frau caught sight of Labrador looking apologetically, an emotion that well suited him rather than the cold glare he had a moment back. He sighed as he ran his gloved hands through his hair.

"But the stupid brat isn't here. I looked everywhere for him yesterday, he's not here."

"Not that I'm trying to be cruel or anything, but Teito could very well be in the wreckage. We've only begun to clear everything out," Castor spoke softly.

"No, no. He's not here. I've always been able to…" Frau shook his head. "I don't know what it is but I could always…_sense_ him. Like instinct. I would just be able to tell if he's around or not."

"But Frau," Labrador placed a gentle hand on Frau's shoulder, "a…a soul no longer with us would not be able to emit anything."

"Either way, he's gone, so get over it," Castor grumbled before he could stop himself.

In an instant, Frau had the russet by the collar of his shirt, ready to throw a punch but Labrador was quick enough to latch onto that arm and hold it back.

"Can you two stop bickering? We're suppose to be a united front! If they see us fighting, they'll start to lose hope in the church and in God!"

"For fuck's sake," Castor rolled his eyes, "can you stop with the alter boy attitude? It's getting really, _really _annoying."

"What was that, you barbarian?"

"Can you two stop it?" Frau groaned, though it seemed somewhat awkward, what with him still holding onto Castor and Labrador still latched onto his raised fist.

"I'll show you what this barbarian can do, alter boy! What's the whole point of being _Profe_ if you can't even predict that _this_ would happen?"

"I can't turn it off and on at will, you immature cretin! Why don't you run off and play with your little dolls?"

"_That's _the best insult you can throw at me? No wonder you pretend to be so self-righteous, you taunt like a four-year-old girl!"

At that moment, it was up to Frau to prevent the two from fighting. The hand he was using to keep Castor in place was now keeping the puppeteer away, preventing him from reaching the gardener. And the arm that had been taken by Labrador to prevent its use on the russet's face was being used to keep the lilac-haired priest from launching himself onto Castor.

Frau wondered bitterly if Castor would even _bother_ keeping him and Labrador from fighting, seeing that that pairing was all that was left.

"Stop it, morons! You're causing a scene!"

Both males settled down a bit, giving one last glare before turning their backs on each other.

"Castor," Frau sighed "you very well know that Labrador doesn't have control over his visions. There was no way he could've seen this coming even if he concentrated on it. And frankly, I don't think anyone could've seen this coming. We've had a treaty with those military bastards for decades now, for them to have broken it is completely random. And Lab, you can't blame Castor for feeling upset about what has happened to him. His anger is rightly justified even if it is rather cruel."

"Step down from your soapbox, Frau," Castor growled as he looked over his shoulder. "You would have done the same. You probably would have done worse. Do _not_ deny it. I want to hear you admit it."

"Castor," Frau growled.

"Tell me. Had you lost Teito, lost him how I have lost Lazet, what would you have done? Tell me."

Silence stretched on as Frau held Castor's sidelong glare. It took all his will power to keep himself from attacking the puppeteer again. It grew more and more difficult to keep eye contact without feeling the need to punch something.

Unable to stand it any longer, Frau turned away.

"Fine. Fine. I would have slaughtered as many soldiers as I could. Is that what you wanted to hear?"

Frau forced himself to his feet and dusted himself before advancing towards the roaring flame. The air reeked of burning flesh. And the pile of bodies to be burned was still high. A new found fury kindled inside of him and the need to indulge in mindless rage was screaming to be heard. And something told him his scythe was more than willing to help him carry out that plan.

"I think…" Frau glared into the fire, seeing the silhouettes of the deceased within it. He shuddered as a corpse's head tilted back, displaying its burning face for him to see. "I think everyone here feels the same way…"

"What do you propose we do, Capitán?"

Frau remained silent for a moment, pondering Castor's question. There was so many things one could do in a situation like this but the only one that seemed promising, the only one that seemed well-worth its trouble, was revenge.

"You guys'll stay here; help bring order to this god forsaken spit of land. I plan on storming the First District. They will lose twice the number of people we lost here today."

"You stupid, Frau?" Castor glared, grunting as he stood to his feet.

Frau turned to glare at the puppeteer, slightly startled to find the man smirking.

"You think I'm gonna let you have all the fun?"

"Do you both have a death wish?" Labrador hissed, alternating his glare from both bishops. "You plan on raiding a _military base_? Must I remind you that _three _people on that military base had us dancing to their rhythm? Ayanami-san almost killed you, Frau! And that, that Hyuuga-san was very well capable of doing the same to you, Castor!"

"But this time, I'll be going too."

All three turned to find Hakuren standing behind Labrador. For how much of the conversation he had heard, they had absolutely no idea. The long-haired blond approached their group, slipping in between Labrador and Castor. He made eye contact with both before turning fully to Frau.

"No." The word came instant, simple. Frau wasn't about to let a _kid_ get involved in their little suicide mission.

"You can say no a million times, Frau-sama but I will follow you. I am quite good at retrieving information I need so there is no use trying to sneak off without me. The only way you can keep me from going is if you break both my legs."

"Now there's an idea," the blond smirked but frowned when Hakuren refused to respond properly, which was to look terrified.

"I want to go, Frau-sama. I truly believe that the Chief of Heaven will not always punish a crime that must go punished, that is when we must act on the parts of Judge and Executioner."

"You know, there is no guarantee that we'll come back alive."

"I understand and accept that possibility."

"We want in as well, _Archbishop Frau_."

Glaring, Frau's sight landed on Bishop Lance, the ever pompous idiot. The blond smirked at Frau's reaction, advancing forward with a handful of bishops following behind him.

"How long have all of you been listening?" Castor glared at the crowd, annoyance clear in his voice.

"Somewhere between 'you immature cretin' and 'you taunt like a four-year-old girl'," Lance replied with his smirk still in tact.

"I actually never left," Hakuren answered nonchalantly.

Frau, Castor and Labrador turned to the blond teen in unison. Once replaying their conversation in their heads, they realized some of the things they had said.

Frau shrugged his shoulders, Castor slapped his forehead and Labrador looked too embarrassed to look at anyone.

"I actually feel rather special that you three bothered to be worried about me so don't feel bad about that."

They gave each other a sidelong glance but Frau immediately interrupted any questions that might have surfaced.

"I want to know that everyone fully understands that there might not be any coming back after this! Do you all understand?"

They all threw Frau an annoyed look, which answered the questioned simply.

"Fine then," the blond glared. "You two," he pointed to Lance and a brunet beside him, "go find us some working bascules."

"Go with him, Robert," Lance waved off the bishops, refusing to be ordered around by Frau just yet.

"Haku, was the hawkzile garage raided or destroyed?" Frau chose to ignore Lance on basic principal. Sooner or later, the arrogant man would have to accept the fact that Frau was Archbishop.

"No, Frau-sama. I checked the garage myself. There are a few hawkziles missing, possibly stolen by some Church residents but there should be enough for the crowd here." Hakuren looked around to the accumulated clergy, counting in his head. He was eighty percent positive that there was enough hawkziles for all, relatively.

"Alright. Everyone, find food and a decent place to sleep. We leave at dawn."

"Is that a normal person's dawn or a church's dawn?" A bishop in the back asked.

Frau smirked. "What do you think?"

* * *

**A/N: And that is what I meant by OOC.**


	17. Recruitment Process

**A/N: My version of Frau's past. This is **_**not**_** in the manga. (I'm pretty sure even if I haven't been catching up on it lately). **

* * *

**Chapter Seventeen**

**Recruitment Process**

**(Flashback)**

It was a small community, a village not even worthy of being placed on the map. The villagers depended greatly on their own strength and sweat to provide food and shelter for themselves. They hardly traded with neighboring towns because all their crops and livestock went to feed themselves. At times, in prosperous seasons, they would have extra wheat or animal furs that could be sold but these items were usually just stored. So it was safe to assume that the village was isolated from the rest of the world.

So it was truly a shock that mercenaries just happened to stumble upon their quaint town. They gave off the impression that they were just a group of travelers, but they were far from it. They called themselves Air Pirates, their priorities blurry. Neither good nor evil, just doing their part to survive. And survive they did well.

They would use their own friends if the situation was profitable. And to stumble upon a desolate town of one hundred, it was truly a miracle. They were low on supplies and soldiers, and whenever such a thing happened, they "borrowed" some more to keep themselves going.

It happened in the dead of night.

The village was raided.

Preserved food and wine was taken in bulk. Anyone past their prime and useless was slaughtered without question. Potential soldiers were forced to board their airships. Usually children were taken, seeing that they could easily be manipulated and the military always hesitated when attacking them. The Air Pirates had done it before; it was not their first time doing this to a village. Though this was one of the few times an _entire_ village would be raided.

The work was done quickly and simply. All but in one house, that is.

The home belonged to a family of four: a father, his wife and their two children, an older son and younger sister. The oldest was but eight and the youngest was half of that.

Though young, the Air Pirates' Captain saw much potential in the boy. They usually only stole ten year olds, seeing that any younger and they could hardly even carry a weapon let alone pilot a bombing jet. The boy had daring blue eyes, feigning courage though it was obvious that he was outnumbered and outmatched. The only problem with stubborn children was that they could hardly ever be broken; they rebelled until their last breath. The Captain, however, knew how to break his fair share of people. They were all the same, in the end. Loyal to their families, especially coming from a town like this.

Pulling a gun from his holster, he pointed the gun to the eight year old. The child glared in retaliation, his small chest rising and falling rapidly.

"Guts, this one has," the Captain grinned.

"You leave them alone!" The father pulled back the child rather harshly, practically strangling him with the collar of his shirt.

The Captain narrowed his eyes. He was a quite observant man; being able to read any simple gesture and turning it into speak.

"Not getting along with daddy, are we?" He asked the child, who barred his teeth in retaliation.

"I won't kill your family if you do one thing for me."

Without hesitation, the father shoved the boy forward, using that opportunity to bring his daughter and wife closer.

The blond boy glared back at his father before turning his glare to the man before him. The Captain was tall and thickly built with spiked black hair and narrow amber eyes. He flipped the gun in his hand and caught it by the barrel, its handle pointed towards the blond.

"Shoot your family."

The blond's eyes widened, taking a step back away from the weapon. The sound of firearms cocking in place sounded behind him and the child turned to find his family being held at gunpoint by two other mercenaries.

"Shoot them, or I'll make you watch as I torture them."

"Oh, how the Capt'n loves to torture," one of the mercenaries chuckled, his finger itching to pull the trigger. "He's so good at it too; it even gives me the shivers just thinkin' about it."

"And looky here," the other laughed, "he's got two women to work with!"

"The girl is rather young, dontcha think?" The Captain chuckled, his eyes narrowing down at the child.

"You filthy animals!" The father yelled only to have the butt of the gun ramming into his skull.

"I'll give you five seconds to think it over, kid," the Captain caught the boy's attention once more.

He counted as the young blond looked back and forth between his family and the gun. What was going on through the child's head, the Captain could not guess but he was enjoying the panicked look he had. The boy was cracking, all that was left was to give the final blow and shatter him.

"Five," he finished.

Flipping the gun once more, he caught it by the handle, cocked it and had it aimed in one easy motion. The gun fired and the father screamed in pain, earning a wail from the mother. The father grunted, grabbing his bleeding knee. The mother continued to wail, wrapping her arms protectively around her husband, leaving her daughter alone.

The Captain followed by pointing the gun at the girl's head.

"Bring me a knife," he spoke to one of his troops. "I want to play _little piggies_ with the girl here. Let's see how many _piggies_ go home before she starts crying."

"Don't!" The boy grabbed the barrel of the gun and pointed it away from his sister, his large blue eyes watering at the corners. "Don't…"

"Are you going to kill them then?"

The blond nodded.

"Use your words, boy!"

"Yes!" He ripped the gun out of the Captains hand and pointed it towards his parents, his hands shaking violently as he did so.

"It's really quite easy," the Captain used his most nurturing voice, "just pull this thing down and pull the trigger. If you do it right, you only have to shoot three times."

The blond closed his eyes, unable to watch the blaming faces of his parents.

"Don't close your eyes, boy! I want you to watch them!"

The sudden shout startled the blond, causing him to accidentally pull the trigger. The bullet strayed and hit the mother on the back as she protected her husband. In a matter of seconds, blood streamed out of the woman's mouth. She hacked and coughed, causing more blood to spill, but she never released her husband.

"Look what you did you little monster!" The father yelled, tears streaming down his emerald eyes. "All she ever did was love you! She always protected you when you caused others trouble! She took on so much harassment from the village because you just had to turn out to be such a delinquent! I should have gotten rid of you when I had the chance! This family never needed you! We never-!"

Three shots were fired, all into the father's skull. The man fell onto the ground, on top of his wife. The woman, shaking and shivering, turned her wide blue eyes towards her son, who held the smoking gun. She opened her mouth, as if to speak, but only thick red liquid spilled out. The blond narrowed his eyes, his vision blurred by tears. He shot the gun once more, thrown back by the force he could no longer withstand.

Lowering the gun, he stared into his mother's lifeless eyes. Her mouth was still open, still releasing blood. He wanted to vomit, he wanted to break down and cry. He wanted to shoot himself.

"Now the girl."

The blond boy closed his eyes and shook his head, dropping the gun onto the hardwood floor with an audible _thunk_. The Captain picked up the weapon and reloaded it, presenting it to the blond once more.

"If you do it right, she won't feel a thing. Unless, you want _me_ to do it."

The blond stole the weapon back and walked towards his little sister. Her eyes were the same color as her father though she stole the golden white hair of their mother. He had gotten a washed out version of that blond.

The girl had not cried, had not screamed or shed a single tear through all of this. Her large emerald eyes looked up to her big brother, innocent and unassuming.

Tears streamed down his face as he raised the weapon to his sister, the girl didn't move, didn't cry, didn't do anything. Unable to stand the sight of her anymore, the blond rushed forward and knocked her down. He pressed the barrel right onto her forehead and pulled the trigger until all he could hear was the clicking of the empty revolver.

He bit his lip to prevent himself from screaming. Throwing the gun aside, he gently closed his sister's eyes and hugged her close, her body still warm and soft.

"We can bury her, if you want," the Captain spoke, signaling his men to hurry up and leave.

The blond nodded. He picked up his sister's tiny form, struggling slightly but glared at the Captain when he approached to help. He was not about to let anyone touch her. No one.

They went outside, wrapped her in a blanket and buried her. The task took over five hours, seeing that the blond wanted to do everything himself. As soon as he finished, he stared out to his home.

"I want to burn it down," he tried to sound cold but failed when his voice broke.

The Captain snapped his fingers and was presented with a small bomb. He presented the explosive to the blond, who took it hesitantly. The Captain struck a match to life and lit the fuse. The blond threw the bomb into the home and took off running towards the awaiting airship. As the doors to the airship began to close, the bomb went off, engulfing the entire house with flames within seconds.

"So what's your name, Blondie?" the Captain finally asked, once everything was done and finished.

"I don't have a name," the blond glared at the floor. "Not anymore."

"How 'bout I name you then?" He placed a hand on the boy's shoulder and begun directing him towards the cockpit. "I've always wanted to call my own kid Frau. But what with those military pigs killing my wife, never got the chance to. So I'll be calling you that."

"Yeah," the boy nodded.

"I know you might hate me now, Frau, but you were meant to leave that town. Your sister and your mom are in a better place, they don't have to worry about surviving anything. All they have to worry about now is relaxing." Once entering the cockpit, the Captain sat himself in his chair, instructing Frau to stand beside him. "Trust me; you'll make a new family. And you can start with us."

Funny thing was he did start a new family with them.

With the Air Pirates.

* * *

**A/N: Again, NOT IN THE MANGA. Just my version of Frau's past. It's just to fit in with the rest of my story. **


	18. Militaristic Victory

**A/N: Ba-di-dum. One little note before you guys get started, there is a scene that seems rather random. You'll know it when you come to it. There's an **_**entire**_** back story to it, involving the Military Men of the Basburg Academy (Sounds like "The Real Housewives of wherevertheyarefrom"). It's all in my head really and I'm still debating on whether I should start it. Probably give it that title too, The Military Men of Basburg. Hehe. Well, if you guys **_**might**_** want to read it, yah know, after reading the small scene with them in it, then **_**please**_** let me know. Just so you know, it might well turn out to be just random drama that **_**real**_** Military Men wouldn't even go through but that's what's awesome about anime characters, you can do whatever you want with them! **

* * *

**Chapter Eighteen**

**Militaristic Victory **

Before the rooster even crowed to wake the sun, the church was already up and beginning their chores.

_That_ was what a church's dawn meant. To rise before the sun.

The bishops preparing themselves for the upcoming battle were already awake and ready by the time Frau had to drag his lazy carcass towards the hawkzile garage. It did not matter what the day would bring, Frau was never a morning person. Not even the partial destruction of his home could change that.

Rubbing his face furiously, Frau stifled a yawn before looking over his small platoon of troops. He rubbed his eyes, thinking his vision was distorted but when he opened them again, he tilted his head off to one side and frowned.

"Is it just me, or are there more people?" He asked Hakuren, who, like a good child would, brought him coffee.

Hakuren nodded, realized Frau wasn't looking at him, what with his eyes closed, so he voiced it. The blond nodded, stole the cup of steaming coffee and began sipping it as he walked through the crowd towards the lock keeping all the hawkzile's imprisoned. Only after he opened the lock to the garage did he even bother opening his eyes. The door was opened and revealed the vehicles inside.

Frau stood off to the side with Lance, Castor, Labrador, and Hakuren as they watched the other bishops take a hawkzile and bring it out. Frau would have counted the men as they came out, just to see how many people were willing to go through with the suicide mission, but he guessed three people beside him were doing that already. (Obviously, Lance wasn't one of those people). He drained the rest of his cup before handing it to Lance, who glared at Frau and handed the cup to Castor, who equally glared and passed it on to Labrador, who looked at it, unsure of what to do with it. Sighing, Hakuren stole the cup and threw it behind him, ignoring the looks he was receiving when they heard the ceramic crash onto the ground.

After the last bishop exited, Frau asked out loud how many that was. Three replied: fifty-seven, one replied: What am I, your maid?

Ignoring Lance, Frau proceeded into the garage to grab his own vehicle. But he stopped short as he glared at the remaining hawkziles.

"There's only three," he mumbled.

"Oh really? I thought the rest were invisible," Castor answered sarcastically.

"How do we decide who gets to ride by themselves?" Hakuren asked, trying his best to inch closer to the closest vehicle without the others noticing.

"Simple," the group turned to Lance, who had spoken, "like this." The man was on the hawkzile and racing out before any of them could stop him.

"No!" Frau groaned, "I am not riding bitch. Fuck this, I'm walking."

"Frau don't be stupid." Castor smirked, "you're perfect for it."

"I am really starting to dislike your attitude, bastard. Besides, how do you plan on driving without your glasses?" Frau flicked the puppeteer's forehead.

"I can see relatively fine without them," he shot-back.

"Relatively? Oh, that makes me feel _so_ much better."

The two were about to start bickering when a sharp whistle forced them to stop. The winced at the noise and turned to find Labrador and Hakuren already seated on the vehicles.

"You snooze, you lose," the long-haired blond smirked as he leaned against the vehicles controls.

"Labrador, you're blinder than I am! Move over!" Castor objected as he advanced forward to push the gardener off the seat.

"Since I really have no special abilities that will work in combat, unlike you two, it's better strategy that I drive," the lilac-haired male smiled, his foot raised to keep Castor at bay.

The russet growled but sat himself behind Labrador anyways. Sighing, Frau followed example and glared down at Hakuren's blond head. The two hawkziles moved silently forward to the awaiting crowd.

"Took you four long enough," Lance smirked.

"Everyone," Frau stood on the seat as he looked out to all his troops. "We're going to raid a military base, do _not_ let your guard down. Those bastards train for things like these. I'll be riding up front, the rest stay behind until I give the go. I've broken in once, so here's the low down. The gate entering to the First District will be our first problem to overcome. Those soldiers are heavily armed though lack experience. If we ambush them, we can overwhelm them and keep going without alerting the main base."

Frau continued with his plan, explaining every detail that he had planned. He explained to them about where the soldiers were housed, where the weapons were kept and that, if things went sour, they would be forced to fight the children at the Academy. When their General would send the kids out to fight, Frau wasn't sure, but warned them anyways. Their Zaphion wielding soldiers were most likely the only soldiers they had remaining, so he warned them to proceed with caution. There was one thing being confident with ones abilities, but another to be reckless. Hakuren had shot him a look but Frau had chose to ignore it. The final thing he explained was that if anyone had a problem with taking someone's life, to at least make sure that they were good and unconscious before allowing them to live. The last thing they needed was to let their guard down amongst "dead" soldiers only to have them "come back to life" and surprise attack.

"Everyone understand?"

They all gave a united holler, raising their bascules up in the air.

"Alright then, we move out!" Frau dropped back to his seat.

The hawkziles all started up at once, vibrating the ground as they sped out of the church grounds and around its walls. The sun was slowly beginning to rise, casting their shadows long. The air was still thick with smoke and as they left the boundary of the Seventh District, those who could, turned back and watched the sun burn in an exaggerated red and orange.

"Frau-sama?" Hakuren called through the howling wind.

"Yeah?" Frau grunted as he gripped the sides of the hawkzile tightly. The road between the First and Seventh District had always been bumpy and, now, without anything to hold onto properly, he was threatened of being thrown off.

"Do…" Hakuren bit his lip but shook his head, he had to ask. If he didn't, he would feel that he was the only one that was worried and he disliked that fact. Teito had always confided in him that he was terrified at the idea that no one would know, or care, if he disappeared. Hakuren couldn't go another day thinking that he was the only one worried. "Do you think we'll find Teito in the First District?"

Frau remained silent, his eyes out towards the road. To put it simply, he didn't want to hope. And if he said it out loud, he would start hoping.

"I don't know," he replied, knowing it was the truth.

Hakuren nodded, accepting of that answer.

x-x-x

The bordering gate was well within sight. Three characters could be seen patrolling the area, their weapons resting on their shoulders. Upon seeing them, Frau remembered what these people were responsible of. Not just the devastation they threw upon the Seventh District, but the lives they had ruined. His life included. His second family killed because they were doing something "wrong". It seemed that no matter what side Frau joined, he was always opposing the Basburg Military.

His right arm ached furiously, Verloren's scythe practically begging to be used. Its voice whispered into his ear, alluring him with the sweet taste of revenge. Unable to control it any longer, Frau ripped the bandage that obscured the demonic markings on his arm. The scythe began to form without waiting for permission.

At hearing Frau hiss in pain, Hakuren turned slightly to catch sight of the living scythe stretching and forming from seemingly nowhere. He immediately turned back around, trying to remind himself that Teito had warned him about this. That Frau, Castor and Labrador were not like the rest of the bishops. Hakuren had just brushed that off as his friend trying to say that they were "special" to him. But to actually think that they really weren't "normal", the blond teen never would have guessed. They acted like any human being. Hakuren shook his head. They _were _human beings. Supernatural powers or not.

"You scared kid?" Frau chuckled into Hakuren's ear, causing a delightful shiver to run down the teen's spine.

Hakuren forced himself to calm down. After having _that_ done to him, the blond now realized why Teito really had no chance against the bishop. Now Hakuren admired the man in more ways than one.

But with an easy smirk, he looked to the older blond from the corner of his eye. "Not at all, Chief. Question is: can you even use that thing while going eighty miles per hour?"

Hakuren wouldn't dream (or rather, he would) of stealing Frau away from Teito. Better yet, he doubted Frau would enjoy the possibility. From what he knew, the man was still a skirt-chaser. He had eyes only for stupid, stupid, stupid lucky Teito.

"'Course I can. Who do you think you're talkin' to?"

Placing a hand on Hakuren's shoulder, Frau lifted one foot onto the seat, leaning forward to cut through the air rather than battle against it. The gate was fast approaching and more guards began to come out of hiding. He used the hawkzile to partially cover the scythe until the opportune moment.

The guards seemed to realize that the platoon of riders were not planning on stopping so they raised their weapons and fired warning shots up to the sky. But the bishops continued full speed, with Frau and Hakuren leading.

The guns began blasting their ammunition once the first hawkzile crossed the red line, which was two miles from the gates. Hakuren formed a shield, something bullets very well couldn't penetrate. He pushed the hawkzile faster, the living vehicle roaring as it took off at twice its speed. The smart people jumped out of the way, the haughty ones remained rooted to the spot.

Frau leaned off to one side, clamping Hakuren's shoulder to prevent himself from falling all the way. He leveled his sickle horizontally at the last possible moment, giving the idiots that did not move not enough time to retreat if they so wished it. The blade easily cut through five but did not cause them bodily harm.

Hakuren turned his head back to the scene, seeing those five still rooted in their spot until the rest of the hawkziles zoomed past, knocking them to the ground.

"You didn't do anything!" Hakuren shouted to Frau who remained in the same position though no longer leaning, seeing that the vehicle had to weave through a mess of trees. The movement could have easily thrown off the archbishop.

"This scythe wasn't mean to kill _mortals_. Rather, it was meant to kill Kor and the like," Frau shouted over the sound of the engine, turning back to make sure the last two bishops in the pack remained at the military post to finish any potential survivors. Satisfied that they did, he turned back to the blond teen. "Since I can't _physically _harm them, I harm them _spiritually_. Get it?"

"You…_killed_ their souls?"

"In a sense."

Hakuren shook his head, turning his attention back onto the road. "You learn something new every day."

"Scared yet?" Frau smirked only to be disappointment with Hakuren's failure to respond properly. The teen had laughed.

"Did that _ever_ work on Teito?"

"It used to," the blond mumbled, eyes glaring towards the fast approaching structure that was the military building. "Back when he was still impressionable."

"I do believe he still is, Frau-sama."

Frau refrained from responding, preparing himself for the re-match he was waiting for. This time he would not lose to Ayanami. The bastard would come to learn that he wasn't as great as he thought himself.

"We're coming up on the base," Frau shook the teen's shoulder to gain his attention. "Prepare to use evasive maneuvers. I'm sure the weapons they'll be using this point onward aren't going to be easily blocked by Zaphion shields."

Hakuren nodded, his grip on the hawkzile's handles tightening. As they broke out of the forest, he turned the vehicle so Frau had leverage to swing his weapon. He swung the scythe and cut through the fencing that was preventing them passage as if it was made of butter. As Hakuren ran out of road, he planted a foot on the ground and forced the hawkzile to turn sharply to go in the opposite direction. Frau flipped himself over so his back rested against the teen's and cut the rest of the fencing off. Once that was through, Hakuren directed the vehicle in the right direction and right in between two soldiers who had come out of their post to find out what the commotion was about. Frau managed to slice through one before he was well out of reach of the other but Castor, following right behind, had all the time he needed to get rid of him.

Just as they were about to being to celebrate for having gotten so far without triggering any alarms, a siren wailed off in the distance, announcing their arrival. Within seconds, they were being fired upon by military men on hawkziles, awkwardly aiming their weapons while they tried to control their fast running vehicles.

"These mortals are mine!" Castor yelled, prompting Labrador to fly past Frau and Hakuren.

The russet raised himself to stand on the seat with his arms stretched out. He flexed his fingers, clapped his hands together and threw them out in one fluid motion. All visible enemy hawkziles crashed together and flew out of the way of the incoming bishops.

They easily raced by, sure that the people on those living vehicles wouldn't be getting up any time soon.

x-x-x

"Chairman, the enemy is fast approaching. I have been informed that they are the bishops of District Seven. They have wiped out our third line of defense without much trouble. I was sent to retrieve orders," a young soldier saluted, his eyes kept to a spot just above the Chairman's head. Even though he was not making eye-contact with the man, he was feeling as frightened as a rabbit cornered by a wolf. It took much of his will power to keep himself from shaking though an outburst by Chairman's preferred Lieutenant destroyed it in one fell swoop.

"_Ouuuuuu_. Aya-tan _hates_ getting bad news!"

"Hyuuga."

That single word was all he needed to draw his sword, flash the metal and store it back home. Hyuuga bumped past the private, amused when the boy began gushing out blood from a horrible slash on his back. The soldier fell to the ground, twitching as death came slowly. The dark-haired man sat on the Chairman's desk, looking down at the twitching body as he played with his lollipop.

"Ew," was all the Lieutenant had to say before he looked over to the man sitting in the large chair behind him. Though the Chairman had said nothing, Hyuuga had a feeling he did something wrong.

"Hyuuga," the man glared with deep amber eyes, half hidden from view by his military-issued cap, "next time, _wait_ until I give you an order."

"That's not what you wanted?" he feigned innocence.

"That man only came to tell you that your base is being attacked and you kill him?"

Hyuuga turned to the male that had supplied the outburst. He smiled as he jumped off the desk and approached. Squatting, Hyuuga pulled the lollipop out of his mouth and regarded the brunet curiously.

"What would you have done, Teito Klein?"

The brunet growled at the mention of his name, struggling against the cuffs that were placed on his wrists, his arms twisted back. He was sitting at the foot of the Chairman's desk, dressed like any cadet. Unable to use his hands, Teito kicked out towards the Lieutenant, annoyed with the question.

"I would have thanked him for doing his job!"

"But his job is to handle the situation, not whine about not knowing what to do," Hyuuga smiled as he grabbed the brunet's foot.

Teito growled and struggled to now free his captured foot.

"Hyuuga, stop playing with Teito."

"Aw! You're no fun anymore, Aya-tan," he released Teito's foot and stood to his feet, putting on his best pouting face as he turned to Ayanami.

The man watched him coolly through seemingly red eyes. With his fingers laced together and resting on his abdomen, he appeared to be the picture of tranquility. Also, the way he slouched in his chair seemed to prove that as well.

"I do not recall ever being…_fun_," he spoke the word as if it was a foreign concept that he just learned of. His attention turned to the boy at his feet, who turned his glaring emerald eyes up to Ayanami. "I am rather surprised though. I was expecting an attack from the clergy much earlier than this. How long has it been since your arrival? Seven days?"

"They didn't know I came," Teito growled, unable to do much of anything else. Though the man did very little to intimidate him, Teito couldn't help but shrink away whenever those eyes and that cold demeanor were directed to him.

"As you've mentioned before," Ayanami looked away and to his Lieutenant. "Still, if Zehel truly cared about you then he would have figured it out sooner, do you not agree, Hyuuga?"

The man placed his hands on his hip and nodded.

"He didn't know I came!" Teito shouted, forcing down the insane urge to start crying. He wouldn't. Not in front of Ayanami.

"Wait."

Everyone's attention turned to a tall brunet leaning against the bookshelf on the wall opposing that of the windows, a novel hiding him from view until he lowered it. He placed a finger on his chin, sights turned skyward. Moments ticked by before he snapped his fingers.

"I just remembered what I was going to say."

"Spit it out, Katsugari," a small boy with neon-pink hair snarled. He was huddled at the opposite side of the desk, standing just now to glare properly at the Captain.

"Someone's rather cranky," Hyuuga teased, looking over his shades to eye Kuroyuri. The boy glared in return, daring the dark-haired male to utter a single word against him with fierce crimson eyes. Hyuuga shrugged his shoulders and slipped his dark glasses back up his nose, obscuring his eyes completely.

"Well," Katsugari ignored the exchange between Lieutenant and Commander as he walked towards the desk, not bothering to continue until he spotted Teito's green eyes looking at him. "This is just me thinking out loud," he turned to Ayanami, "but if Teito-kun did not inform Zehel of his whereabouts, why are they here, attacking us of all things?"

The room was silent for a moment, just one moment before a loud blast rattled the high-rise windows. Ayanami turned his attention outside, glaring at how young the sun was. Katsugari's assessment was something to think about. Pushing his chair back, he walked around Teito and advanced towards the windows. He placed his arms behind him and clamped one wrist with a gloved hand. From his office, he could see the clergy clearly below, wielding their weapons. As he narrowed his eyes, he took notice that there was no attempt to storm the base. The clergy simply slaughtered any and every soldier within their range.

"Would Frau have made the assumption that if you were to go missing, Teito, that this should be the first place to look?"

Startled at hearing Ayanami call Frau by his real name rather than his Ghost name, it took the teen a moment before finding his voice. "I…I don't know. Maybe."

"Would it have really taken the bishop an entire week to storm the First District in hopes of finding you?"

"…Um, actually, if he did know I was here, he would've gotten here a lot sooner, I think."

"Then what is that man doing _killing_ my soldiers?"

Without elaborating, Ayanami briskly walked towards the exit, Kuroyuri right behind him. The military man stopped short, forcing his inferior to stop as well. A questioning cherry eye looked up as Ayanami watched the boy from the corner of his eyes.

"Kuroyuri, escort Teito to the prison cells down below. Do not let the boy out of your sight."

"Ayanami-sama!" he quickly retorted, anger clearly written on his childish face. "I am a _commander_! I easily outrank these two morons behind me! Why am I always given such asinine missions?"

Ayanami turned fully to the smaller male, appearing as calm and relaxed as if he was still slouching in his comfortable chair but everyone knew better than to believe that. Teito hid himself behind the desk, Katsugari behind his book. Hyuuga whistled a pleasant tune to the ceiling.

"…care to repeat that, _Commander _Kuroyuri? Am I...doing something _wrong_?"

"Yes," the boy continued. He had just angered his Chairman, might as well say what he was going to. "I know you blame me for the failed attempt at assassinating Zehel, Hyuuga told me so."

To this, Ayanami turned his glare to the man currently whistling "ring-around-the-rosie" to the ceiling.

"But I do not see how that one act should taint my otherwise perfect mission accomplishments! I am above the ranks of _escorting_ a child! You are Chairman now! You hold more authority over this army than you once held, giving you free choice of any Private or _Lieutenant_ to assign such juvenile missions to, such as _taking care of a stray_. I don't see why I must-."

As calmly as ever, Ayanami raised his hand and slapped his open palm on his Commander's cheek. Startled, Kuroyuri found himself overpowered by the momentum and crashed onto the ground, a hand on his painfully stinging cheek. He stared blankly at the carpet floor, his mind unable to comprehend what had just happened. He had been struck, by Ayanami. That sort of thing never happened to him. To Hyuuga, yes. The man was well deserved of it, but never Kuroyuri.

"I am Chairman, yes. I virtually own the Basburg Military, yes. I can assign any asinine missions to whomever I want, even a Brigadier Colonel, if I so wished it." Ayanami's voice dropped to a dark growl, his entire body rigid and tense as he turned his glare down to the body at his feet. "So tell me why a _Commander_ is rebelling against orders _I_ have personally assigned. Last I recall, you have _no_ authority to dispute my orders, child. Katsugari!"

"Yes, sir!" The man fanned himself with his book, a lazy hand on his hip. The glare Ayanami sent his way did not faze him in the slightest, or at least, didn't appear to do so.

"Gather up those indolent imbeciles that call themselves generals and lieutenant generals; inform them that their tea time will be cut short. Somehow, I believe one of them is responsible for this. Hyuuga!"

It was the Lieutenants turn to appear as blasé as possible, a lollipop cradled between smiling lips. "Your wish is my command, Aya-tan. Anything your heart desires!" He intertwined his hands together and rested his head on them as if they were a pillow. He batted his eyelashes too, though that went rather unnoticed with his glasses obscuring his eyes. "Just say the word and I shall even give you the _moon_ if you so wish it!"

"Follow," was all the man said before turning heel and heading down the hallway.

Katsugari was the first to leave the room, stepping around Kuroyuri without so much as passing the fallen boy a glance. He disappeared down the opposite direction as Ayanami. Hyuuga, however, remained a few seconds as he hovered over the boy.

"Tsk. Tsk. I warned you, didn't I? You and Ayanami might have been chummy little buddies in lives past but that was only because I wasn't around. Not to mention," the Lieutenant looked over his shoulder, locking eyes with Teito half-hidden behind Ayanami's desk, "Aya-tan has found his long-lost toy. How does it feel to be _fifth_ on Aya-tan's list? Sad that Konatsu-kun outranks you on that list, isn't it? I bet if Haruse was still around, he would outrank you too."

A small hand wrapped around Hyuuga's ankle, not startling much. He stared at it curiously as Kuroyuri turned his hateful glare towards the Lieutenant rather than the floor.

"Ayanami-sama has and _will always_ belong to me! He trusts me and loves_ me_ more than anyone! Even a dirty little urchin like that!" He shot a glare towards Teito before turning back to Hyuuga. "Do not forget that, behemoth."

"Very scary, Kurochii. With a possessive attitude like that, no wonder Aya-tan sighs whenever I mention your name."

Grinning, he stepped over the small male and jogged lightly to catch up with his superior, leaving Kuroyuri to his own musings.

x-x-x

Chairman Ayanami shoved the front doors open to the privately-owned military building. The stench of blood and gunpowder was something he truly did not enjoy waking up to, no matter what anyone believed of him. It just smelled, _badly_. There was no poetic justice behind it.

A line of dead bodies lined the perimeter of the building, as if those were the soldiers trying to prevent the storming of the building. And all around, more bodies littered the ground, thrown aside here and there, even on the building steps. Some of them hung of the wired fencing separating the soldier housing units from the military conference building.

Even as his soldiers were being slaughtered like animals, he had to hand it to the bishops. He never thought them to have this much fight in them, let alone the capability to carry out a plan to attack a military base. And from the looks of it, seeing that more soldiers were being requested to aid, they were doing quite well. He could spot only a few deceased bishops even as their group was already small in numbers.

"Incompetent idiots."

"Hey! I know that guy!" Hyuuga pointed to a man who seemed to be moving about rather strangely, his arms twirling about but whatever he was doing, it was certainly affecting a large number of soldiers, all of them moving in sync to his erratic movements.

"Now, why on earth are they attacking my men," Ayanami glared out to the crowd. He stepped aside rather calmly as a ball of Zaphion flew past him and crashed into the pillars supporting part of the conference building.

"Aya-tan, should you really be out here?" Hyuuga tilted his head off to a side.

"My men are being slaughtered like _pigs_, someone has to save them."

"Then can I?"

Ayanami motioned to the carnage appearing before him. Hyuuga took the hint and drew out his blade, a wicked smile on his face as he dashed down the building's steps.

"Child," he shook his head as he, too, followed after his Lieutenant though at a much calmer pace.

Once reaching the last step, Ayanami conjured a Zaphion shield just as a round of bullets was fired his way. The shield dropped as soon as the firing ceased. He turned to the moron who had fired only to be mildly surprised to find Zehel glaring at him, smoking gun in hand while his scythe was in the other. His lips curved upwards without much difficulty.

"Zehel, I do believe you have come for a re-match then?"

"Damn right I did." Frau threw the useless gun to the ground as he glared at the other.

"But was the pointless slaughter necessary?" he indicated to the dead soldiers around.

"It's pay back for what you did, you sadist!"

Frau took a running start and swung the oversized scythe. Within the blink of an eye, Ayanami drew out a sword strapped to his hip and caught the scythe before it could do any damage. Frau pushed his weight into the scythe, put in all his fury and hate and was rewarded as the ancient weapon sliced through the sword with ease. Ayanami was forced to make quick maneuvers to avoid the attack and just barely avoided being ripped in two by his own weapon.

The Chairman narrowed his amber eyes towards the blond; something about him was different. This was not the boy he had fought before.

A bishop to his immediate left attempted to throw a mediocre attack towards Ayanami, but he was quick to stop it and even quicker to retaliate. But as his attack almost reached its target, it crashed with another and exploded, harming the bishop only slightly by the force of the blast.

He turned a glaring eye towards Zehel, who was the owner of the opposing attack. "Must you interrupt me?"

"You're fight is with me, coward!"

"That's a rather sharp accusation."

"You send your little mindless drones to do your dirty work! I think I'm right on the money when I call you a coward!"

Frau swung the scythe again, only to growl as Ayanami caught it with a single hand, the blade not even piercing his skin.

"I said it once, and I shall say it again for you, Zehel. You dare attack me with my own weapon?"

A loud and earth-trembling blast somewhere behind him caught Ayanami's attention. He turned his head, his eyes ever slightly widening, as the lower part of the municipal building burst into flames and disappeared as quickly as it had appeared; the underground prison cells.

"It's not yours anymore," Frau growled.

A sharp pain brought Ayanami back to the present. He snatched his hands away and retreated a safe distance from the blond. He looked down to his hand, surprised to see it coated in blood. _His _blood.

"You wouldn't _dare-!_" He turned burning crimson eyes towards the blond, only to have his assumptions confirmed.

The scythe retreated back into Frau's arm, causing so much pain that the blond was forced to his knees.

"You insignificant _piece of shit_! How _dare you_? I created you! You are mine, you insufferable waste of metal!" Ayanami reached into the inner pocket of his coat and drew out a small blade. As he ran his hand over it, the blade expanded into a large two-edged sword, the metal shining a silverish-gold.

He ran at Frau, not bothering to play with him before he killed him now. He swung the sword vertically, intent on slicing through the blond's skull when Frau caught the weapon with his own hand, long sharp nails scraping against the material. The blond looked up to the military man with deep crimson eyes, his mouth curving into a wicked smile that exposed long incisors.

"I'll kill you and the stupid bishop!" Ayanami snatched back his sword and swung again, irritated that the blond moved away so easily.

"Archbishop, actually" Frau smiled a very fox-like smile, his voice deeper than before and with a hint of playfulness. "So this is how it feels when you just let the scythe take over? Should've done it a lot sooner."

"I'll laugh when that things becomes the death of you," Ayanami narrowed his eyes.

"Too bad I'm already dead, right?"

"You can always die twice." Ayanami swung his sword again.

x-x-x

"If it isn't Feist-san!" Hyuuga grinned wildly as he ran his blade through a few military soldiers that were keeping him from the russet.

"Ah! Lieutenant Hyuuga-san!" Castor gave an exaggerated bow. "I would never have thought that you would remember me! Where is your Begleiter?" Castor looked around, a kind smile on his face.

"My, whatever would you want to know?"

At seeing the two talk as if they were long lost friends, the soldiers that were trying to overwhelm the russet bishop turned tail and ran. There was something crazy going on, and they wanted no part.

Castor turned his sights to Hyuuga, his kind demeanor disappearing from his eyes and smile as malevolence replaced it. "So he can watch you die."

Castor's manipulative Zaphion shot out to Hyuuga, ensnaring one ankle before the swordsman ran his blade through them, cutting himself free. Castor frowned as Hyuuga continued to smile.

"You shouldn't be able to cut my Zaphion with cheap metal," he hissed.

"Lucky it isn't made of cheap metal, right?" Hyuuga smirked before he raced towards the puppeteer.

Castor believed he was truly being underestimated by the swordsman. He would show him differently. He ensnared a nearby corpse with his Zaphion and threw it towards Hyuuga, completely catching him off guard. It took all the man's attention to stop, cut evenly through the body with his sword and prepare himself for attack once more that he failed to notice that Castor had already taken the initiative to meet him halfway.

He threw a punch, catching it on the swordsman's cheek. The man was turned slightly by the momentum, giving Castor the opportunity to ensnare him with his Zaphion. He lifted the man upwards, high above the ground. With a grunt, Hyuuga ran his blade across whatever Zaphion string he could and easily slipped out. He prepared himself for the harsh landing but was not given that opportunity as Castor threw another wave of his Zaphion towards him, pushing him all the way until the brick walls of the military conference building stopped him.

"Checkmate," Castor licked his lips and advanced forward, certain of the swordsman's death.

"Not quite!" Hyuuga shouted as he removed himself from the wall, blood trickling from his hairline and from the corner of his mouth. His back was aching, and he was certain he had a few broken bones but he wouldn't allow that to spoil his mood. "We're just getting started!"

x-x-x

Somehow, the tables had turned. Frau was the one taunting now while Ayanami swung his weapon furiously, just missing the blond by centimeters.

"I don't see Profe anywhere," Ayanami looked about, wondering where the third Ghost was. Now that he was having trouble with the blond, he was imagining that they might team up and successfully defeat him.

"What am I? His secretary?"

Frau rushed forward and grabbed Ayanami's blade, his self-satisfied smirk faltering slightly as Ayanami's eyes grew darker by the second.

"Do not rush, little Ghost. You must be weary of all and everything."

Ayanami ripped his sword out of Frau's hands, blood splattering onto the ground from the weapon as it was harshly pulled out. Frau groaned in pain as he staggered backward, looking down to his hands. There was a large and nasty gash that had cut through his gloves and flesh, blood seeping out uncontrollably.

"It said normal swords wouldn't hurt me!" Frau growled, throwing an accusing look towards Ayanami.

He laughed in reply, the weapon at his side. "_Normal_ being the key word here, Zehel. You wield a scythe forged in hell; I handle a sword created in heaven. A very useful item when going against a dark weapon, such as my scythe!" [1]

The scythe reformed as Ayanami swung his weapon, stopping the blow from hurting Frau.

The blond's crimson eyes, large incisors, and sharp nails were gone as the scythe no longer possessed him. Determined to win, Frau held the scythe steadily and pushed against it, forcing Ayanami back.

"How do _you_ have Heaven's Sword?" Frau growled, panting lightly.

Ayanami was in the same state, panting lightly and slightly disoriented. "I have my ways, _arch_bishop."

"Is that why you stormed the Seventh District?" Frau dropped the scythe onto the ground, still holding the handle firmly in hand. He wanted answers, and wanted them before he killed the military man.

"What on _earth_ are you talking about, bishop?" Ayanami mimicked Frau's actions and placed the tip of his blade into the ground, hand still on the handle.

"You know very well what I am talking about, bastard!"

"I detest repeating myself, bishop! What on _earth_ are _you_ talking about?"

"You had your soldiers storm the Seventh District! You killed so many people! You destroyed our home, bastard! Do _not _act innocent!"

"I gave no orders to storm the District!"

"And I'm suppose to believe that?"

"Why would I lie about something so trivial? If I had ordered something like that, I would have finished the job, ensuring that you and your other little bishops were well ten feet underground!"

"If not you, then who? They were _your_ soldiers! Who else would give them an order to attack us otherwise? We had a treaty! You would be the only one crazy enough to break it just because you failed time and time again to recapture your _lost student_!"

"You honestly think I would break a treaty over _Teito_? Oh, for heaven's sake!" Ayanami threw his sword onto the ground. "I have been called psychotic many times by many different people but that does not mean I would take it so far! Call off your bishops or I will ensure none of them walk out of my district _alive_!"

Frau stared at him with open shock.

"You heard me, bishop! Call. Them. Off."

Frau pressed his lips onto two fingers and whistled loudly. He never believed it to work but surprised was he as the bishops began grouping closer to one another, their weapons still raised towards the approaching military men.

"Shoot another gun or even _think_ about using Zaphion and I'll have you dangling by your feet deep in the hills so the vultures can eat away at you! Soldiers, stand down!"

The men began to retreat, their weapons still pointed towards the clergy as they still had their weapons raised.

Hyuuga and Castor appeared by their leader's appropriate side as they wearily danced around each other, certain that the other would attack without warning. But they arrived at their respectable side without complication and both looked to their leaders as if they had lost their minds.

"What are you doing, Frau?"

"Aya-tan, what's going on?"

"I want your clergy out of my district, Frau." Ayanami growled as he narrowed his eyes. "You and I have business that needs discussing. Your friend Feist there can come as well; he seems unwilling to leave your side."

"Castor, tell 'em to go."

"You can't honestly believe-!"

"Just do it."

Casting a weary eye upon the two, Castor retreated towards his group and informed the first bishop he came upon to retreat. The message was passed through quickly and soon the sound of roaring hawkziles disappeared into the canyon separating the two districts. Castor made his way back to Frau; Labrador, Lance and Hakuren at his sides.

"Would you rather have this discussion outside, or inside?"

"I'd rather have it out here, if you don't mind, Ayanami." Frau mocked bowed, his face set in a frown.

"It's Chairman to the likes of you."

"And it's Archbishop to yours."

"Very well, _Archbishop_."

Frau gained the strong urge to slap himself on the forehead but refrained from doing so. Why, he thought, did no one take him seriously when he was supposed to be Archbishop? Not the other bishops and, it seemed, certainly not the _Chairman_.

"You were spewing on about my men raiding your district?" Ayanami wasted no time in getting to the point.

"Our district is in shambles. Your men appeared yesterday around noon and began bombing our buildings and wall. They shot down anyone and everyone within their line of sight. I thought we might return the favor. It is the neighborly thing to do, after all," Frau spoke with a growl, having to hold back the younger blond by his torn shirt to keep him from throwing himself at the Chairman and his Lieutenant.

"It is truth when I say I never gave such orders."

"I find that hard to believe since you've threaten us before."

"Hardly. I knew the boy would act the hero and come of his own free will. I am a god-fearing mortal, Zehel. I could hardly attack his people without having a good cause."

"And we're supposed to believe that?" Castor snarled.

Ayanami cast each man a glance before turning his sights towards the building to his right. The rubble was slowly being cleared away by someone trapped inside. And soon Katsugari, covered in dust, emerged with a man dressed in a military suit in tow.

"Captain, good news, I hope?"

The tall brunet coughed as he continued to drag the body across the flat walkway and down the steps.

"I want a raise, Ayanami-sama. You do not pay me enough to interrogate cowardly men who would sell off their own mothers to save their hinds. Either way, I found what you were looking for, or I hope so." Katsugari looked back to what he had just crawled out of. "I certainly do not want to return to that. Woah," he had finally caught sight of the battlefield. "What did I miss?"

"Not much," Hyuuga replied.

"Who-?" Ayanami began but stopped himself. Instead, he pinched the bridge of his nose, his anger spiking tremendously. "You know what; I cannot force myself to care _who_ did it. Rather, I care what I will do to the person that is _stupid_ enough to do it."

Ayanami reached down and grabbed the man by his dusty hairs, dragging his body upwards. To help ease his pain, the man followed, tears already forming in the corners of his eyes.

"Please, whoever you are, inform these _kind_ bishops of your _moronic plan!_"

"Ow, ow, ow!" The man cried as Ayanami began tugging on his hair harshly.

Irritated now more than ever, the Military Chairman threw the man onto the ground and planted a heavy boot onto the man's back.

"Please, Katsugari, if you would be so kind as to inform these _kind_ bishops of this man's _moronic plan_."

"He said he wanted to frame Ayanami-sama and start a war with the clergy so he could convince the council members that Ayanami-sama is mentally unstable and thus unworthy as Chairman."

"As I said, they all think me psychotic," the Chairman glared, daring any of them to speak up about it. "Now get out of my district before I force all of you to clean up this mess."

"You can't just expect us to leave," Labrador stepped up and placed himself at Frau's left. "Whether he acted on your orders or his own, he is still your responsibility, Chairman-san. You have destroyed the majority of our facilities as well as our main source of clean water. That cannot go overlooked."

"What do you want then, Profe?"

"Money, for construction. I'm sure the military has unlimited funds. We, the church however, do not."

Ayanami looked just about ready to throw himself at Labrador but for one reason or another, refrained. Instead he spoke through clenched teeth and a rising temper.

"Fine. _Now_ get out of my district. You'll get your money by messenger in two days. Make sure you don't _kill him_."

Ayanami turned and began walking up the buildings steps.

"Katsugari, Hyuuga, make sure that _dog_ is put in his proper place. I'll deal with him later. Oh, and pick up my sword."

Both males raced to pick up Ayanami's discarded weapon but Hyuuga was quicker. Though he was bleeding from multiple cuts and was bruised all about, Hyuuga followed after his superior with a jump to his step. Katsugari, however, glared down to the quivering man below him. He took him by the back hem of his shirt and began dragging him up the stairs.

There was a sharp blast, startling the paranoid bishops below. They calmed down somewhat when they noticed it had just been someone clearing away the rubble in front of the building's entrance.

Considering they took on a military base, they weren't so badly injured. Castor sported a few cuts and gashes. Labrador had a few bruises but, funny enough, none on his face. Hakuren was close to getting a black eye but otherwise seemed perfectly fine except for the limp in his right leg. Lance just appeared to be dirty. And Frau looked practically unharmed except for the deep gashes in both his hands.

"Let's go home, I guess," Lance sighed as he ran his hand through his disheveled hair and headed towards an overturned hawkzile he prayed would work.

* * *

[1] Just thought it'll be cool if Ayanami has a cool weapon too. This doesn't exist

**A/N: Hehe. I like how I can have them arguing when there's a **_**war **_**going on around them xD Well, rather…strange ending, if I must admit. What can I say? To me, Ayanami hates being blamed for something he didn't do. He seems like the type that would be proud of something like bringing the Seventh District to his knees. Oh, and what about Teito? –Le gasp– You'll find out in a later chapter ;) Maybe in the next. I'm not sure. **


	19. Rousing From Sleep

**A/N: *fidgets* H-hi guys… It's been a while… huh. PLEASE DON'T KILL ME! **

**Anywho~ It's great to be back and working on my main story! I wanna thank those few laggers who just found this story and reviewed, telling me how awesome I am and that I'm practically their god ;3 (No, they didn't say that, don't run and check!) **

**But, all seriousness, I wanna thank all of you for putting up with my stupidity and I hope I haven't lost anyone's respect. Because this is not me! This horrid person who updates once every five months! I hate that person! *Ahem* Anyway. This was edited (by me since I have no Beta and have trouble working with one…) in, liek, two hours so there are probably mistakes I overlooked. If there's anything that is just horrid, please feel free to correct me. I plan on re-editing everything anyways (once I get to my computer at home). Well, I shall let you guys get to reading then.**

* * *

**Chapter Nineteen**

**Rousing From Sleep**

_Dedicated to Silver for reminding me that people out there still care about this story_

The warm body reacted instantly to its icy assault. Shivering, quivering, as large hands trailed down his sides, holding him as if he would break if too much pressure was applied, as if he would vanish if there was not enough.

Chilled lips found his collarbone and they kissed the raised skin gently – once, twice, before an icy tongue trailed a wet path along its length and into the dip of his throat. He swallowed, throat working to…to do something.

That icicle tongue continued its trail, along the entire stretch of muscle until it met jawbone. Sharp teeth nipped the sun-warm skin and extracted a gasp from the warm body. It squirmed again, for something. For more of something.

The dead body was more than happy to comply.

Shivering cold wrapped around comforting heat, and vice versa. They tangled around each other, into each other. Needing more. Wanting more and never getting enough.

Their bodies pounded for more, always more, more, more, _more_.

They attacked each other desperately; both fearing that the fantasy would all end soon and it would never come back.

Lips and tongues battled and danced, hands trailed and explored every inch of each other. They needed more, wanted more. _Fucking wanted more_.

"_Frau…"_

The blond shivered at the sound of his name, attacking with more enthusiasm, needing to quench his never ending thirst.

"_Frau."_

_Oh god, _yes, _he heard._

"Frau!" A bang on wood followed the shout, and the bishop was acutely aware that that voice did not belong to the person he wished it did.

Wearily, Frau opened his eyes and gazed about the room. Everything looked calm, at peace. It was larger than his old room and made it seem empty with his few belongings inside. He raised a brow and turned to look forward again, noticing the intricate pattern on the headboard.

Slowly, eyes trailed down onto the pillow he was currently grasping with strength that should have ripped the fabric apart. He eased his gloved hands slowly and shifted until he was sitting on the bed, legs hanging over the edge.

Eyes, filled with drowsiness, trailed to the door, drunkenly remembering that this was Archbishop Jio's room. Frau's _new _room.

"Frau-sama," a new voice, calmer, sweeter, called, knocking softly, "We're leaving now. Um. Castor-san just wanted to make sure you were alright. We'll be back around sunset…"

Frau did not reply, just continued to stare at the door.

"Well, yes," even from behind the door, the sigh could be heard. "Please, Frau-kun, please get out of this room. We…we miss you."

With that, Frau knew Labrador had left.

And hated them all for waking him from his dream.

_o7-o7-o7_

Time passes whether human interaction gives it permission or not. The sun high in the sky follows its habitual route around the earth without a person there to remind it that it is dusk and it should be hovering over the horizon. Winter´s snow melts under the sunny skies of spring without the aid of a scientist to examine the duration of its cold days and say "that's enough, it's time for warmer weather".

Time just doesn't work that way.

It passes. And continues to pass.

But to Frau this was irrelevant.

He was still living that day, that day they attacked the First District like savages. The day Teito slipped through his fingers (yet again).

His hands itched to hold onto something not there. His mouth spoke to someone that should be walking by his side. His eyes searched for that caring, gentle gaze that always seemed to warm his frozen heart.

The chill in his body was worse now, now that he knew what true warmth was and had it taken away.

Frau shivered unconsciously as he tore his sights away from the working men loading debris onto wheelbarrows and carting the broken stone away to a more useful place. The work on the church courtyard was slow but the few people working there attacked it with such enthusiasm, probably in hopes that the sooner they uncover the cathedral the sooner their beacon of hope could be resurrected and fill the people with God's hope.

The archbishop snorted at the idea.

In compliance to Labrador's request, Frau was outside his room for what was two weeks now since the ordeal that left the Seventh District crippled and broken. He was in the one building that managed to keep upright with minimal damage possible, sitting on the hallway's dusty floor as he watched the setting sun through the archways facing the courtyard.

How things were managed since his sudden refusal to meet with anyone, he wasn't certain but assumed Castor played a part of it. He should care, but found that he did not. It was a worrying thought but it was easily replaced with other troubles. Personal troubles that screamed and cried and gnawed for his attention.

A warm body suddenly slipped next to him, inviting and comforting that Frau had to fight against himself to keep his head from lolling towards the warmth, towards gentle hands and soft words that he _knew _were not there.

Unable to fight temptation, Frau raised a leg and wrapped his arms around it, head dropping onto his raised knee in an attempt to keep some sanity in him.

"I-."

"Don't." It was just a whisper, a faint release of breath that held all the emotions he refused to acknowledge both verbally and physically. With a forceful swallow of nothing but air, Frau's mouth oddly dry, the archbishop cleared his throat, and added more ferocity to his demand. "Don't, Haku."

"B-but-."

"Just…stay, here, with me." And how much strength that took Frau to say, he wasn't certain but hated that he had to say it at all. His mouth had betrayed him, and he tightened his arms in an attempt to keep himself from indulging in that…warmth. It wasn't the warmth he wanted. It wasn't the one he needed. And oh heavenly stars did he…

"H-hai…Archbishop-sama."

Seconds trickled by like hours, but the warmth beside Frau did not stray. It shifted periodically, Hakuren was only human after all, but contact: the warmth of a shoulder or arm or thigh, it never left.

"U-um," the blond teen stuttered after a tense moment of awkwardness when he felt Frau's bulk lean on him for a fraction of a second before he went stiff again.

Frau silently cursed himself for the moment of weakness but soon his train of thought died and he didn't care anymore.

He knew he should. Care, about anything. He had a whole district full of people to take care of; people that were still struggling to survive the ordeal placed upon them. People were homeless, injured or missing loved ones. They needed someone to help them, protect them, in their time of need. And it was Frau's damn job to do that.

Only problem was that he didn't care. He was homeless too, he was injured too, he was missing someone too. But was _he _allowed to ask someone for help? To go and set these wrongs right?

Of course not. He couldn't be given that privilege anymore.

It had been granted to him in a rather spur of the moment "let-me-go-Castor-or-I-swear-I'll-beat-you-senseless-with-a-fucking-hawkzile" once they were near leaving the border of the First District. He had scavenged through the outskirts of the First District, forced a few remaining guards to "tell me where he is!" and have Castor or Hakuren _and_ Labrador pull him back before he murdered someone for not knowing.

Then he had been forced back to the Seventh District, not even defeated but broken.

He was a sad, broken little ghost.

Not that he would admit to something as stupid as that.

Frau's entire body jerked back to consciousness when he felt a warm hand slip through the barrier of his glove and coat, soft fingers gingerly wrapping around his wrist and tugged it away from its straining hold on his other wrist. His fingers lay limp as Hakuren slid his under to match their pattern. This was not what he wanted.

Frau wanted…

"Castor-san-" the teen began, "-came back from that meeting today. You know, the one you set up after the last one didn't end so well..."

Frau refused to respond, or couldn't. His throat was closing in on itself and he fought with every fiber of his being to not sharply pull his hand away from Hakuren. The boy was only trying to help, even if he was doing it the wrong way.

"Well, Labrador went with him and he told me everything that happened. Apparently, the Pope finally decided to show up to this one. He was a bit disappointed that you couldn't attend but I think someone told him that after what happened at the last meeting, it was probably for the best."

'_Oh.' _Frau suddenly remembered what the boy was going on about and used it to distract his mind.

Three days after the raid, Ayanami had delivered just like he said he would. It was such a surprise that Labrador insisted that they try and make amends with the First District. Frau refused, of course, it was that bastard's fault they were in this mess anyway, but with Castor and Lance, he was outvoted (even if his vote counted for two, since he was Archbishop).

So, at the meeting in some military debriefing room, Archbishop Frau and Chairman Ayanami were forced to make amends through the simple act of a handshake.

Frau got as far as raising his hand before it clenched into a fist and he threw it towards the jerk. Easily, his fist was caught and was punched right on the chin by another. He was on the ground, struggling against someone else, and only until he managed to straddle the guy and deliver hit after hit after hit on their pretty little face did he realize he wasn't beating up Ayanami.

It was the man's stupid dog, Hyata or whatever.

They were forcefully separated before the rest of the sane party decided to hold the meeting another day.

"So," Hakuren wrapped up his winded speech, and Frau was uncertain if the boy knew he hadn't been paying attention. "The Pope is going to be stopping by in a few days, see what the damage is here and to pass or fail you for duty as Archbishop.

Castor tried to reason with the Pope, tell him you're currently…compromised but-."

"I'm Archbishop and that's unacceptable."

Frau finally withdrew his hand and stood from his defeated slouch. His internal compass instantly flew down the hallway and caught sight of Castor, signature glasses balanced on his nose, and his ever coy smile on his lips.

"Finally managed to slip out of your stupor, Archbishop-sama?"

The blond grunted in return and stalked towards him, eyes trained onto those rusty-colored orbs. He continued forward however, once he reached Castor, and felt a reassuring slip of fingers pass along the palmer side of his hand. He almost fell into the familiar touch, arms itching to latch onto something familiar. But he reminded himself that he shouldn't.

That he wouldn't.

Frau continued forward, internally struggling to keep his wits about him. Odd glances were passed his way by the late workers of the Seventh District, and only the reassuring footsteps behind him soothed his raw-ended nerves and allowed him to keep his head held high and be that badass archbishop he was suppose to be.

"So what happened at that meeting?" Frau questioned to the air before him, feeling the slip of shoulder contact before Castor walked alongside him at a professional distance.

"The Pope and the Military Chairman went at it like cats and dogs. Not much got done but enough," Castor replied professionally, pushing his teetering glasses with his middle finger. "A clean-sweep is currently going through all high ranking military personnel, the Barsburg family has been called to regulate the military and a few new laws are being established."

"Declaration of war?"

"The Chairman alone no longer has the right to declare such a thing. He needs approval of all members of the Military Board, and a document stating that all other means of peace were exhausted and futile."

"Isn't that how it's supposed to be?"

"Loop holes, Archbishop." Castor cast a sidelong glance and found Frau frowning. "What's wrong?"

Frau sighed, hands shoved into the pockets of his slacks hidden under his bishop's robes. His frown deepened and exposed fine wrinkles along his eyes.

"What now?"

Castor raised a brow in question.

"Half the district's been destroyed," Frau struggled to control his anger, voice coming out in a rushed, heavy tone as he glared to the space before him. "The other half is in riot. The decade's old treaty between the First and Seventh District has been raped and polluted. I punched the Military Chairman in the face," Frau sighed, a hand slipping out of its hiding spot to run through his spiked hair, slicking the hair back before it defiantly stood on end again.

"You _tried _to punch the Military Chairman, you only managed to punch his Lieutenant," Castor corrected.

"Whatever! We're running on money we don't have. More than half of our workforce is stationed as guards around the district, we're living in fear and the people are beginning to doubt their God. So what _now_, Castor," Frau laughed humourlessly, "because I see no other alternative than to ditch this dying land and start fresh."

Castor frowned and made quick step to block Frau from his stamped onto the church courtyard, or what was left of it. The taller man froze, unholy blue eyes darkening as they glared down into brown.

"These are your people, Archbishop" the puppeteer replied with his usual calm.

The blond pushed the final step towards the other, chest to chest, nose to nose.

"They were never my people. My people _died_ and left me here to _rot_."

"So is that how you see us? What we stand for?" Castor took a step back, hands fisted at his side. "We showed you mercy! The mercy of God-!"

"My God is dead!"

Frau forcefully sighed, eyes darting to the side. "I can't do this. I can't be fucking Archbishop-."

"You _have _to be; we need you."

"I don't want to. I want-."

Frau fell silent, eyes drifting to the ruined courtyard. Stones and a thick layer of mud covered the once serene gardens, the polished marble. Giant holes were filled with the fountain's water when it had exploded, quickly turning to mud and housing insane numbers of mosquitoes and other not so pleasant critters.

There was no longer a chapel.

Zehel's memorial brought down to the ground.

"What _do_ you want?"

They caught each other's stare, and Castor grimaced at the raw emotions that his Archbishop no longer tried to hide. He didn't know this man; this man that displayed his pain and anguish so clearly for the world to see. This wasn't the same Frau that tortured him throughout the entire length of their Bishop´s Exams. The same haughty idiot that could get himself out of any trouble with a toothy grin and well-timed words. The same one that made Castor's life a struggle but entertaining none the less. The man that had saved him more times than Castor cared to admit.

"What. The. Fuck."

Castor gaped at Frau's perplexed expression at his words.

"I am serious! What the fuck?" Castor cried, his hands flailing to explain his outrage and confusion in insane gestures. "This isn't like you! This isn't the stupid Frau I knew since we were teenagers! The same idiot that thought it would be funny to wrap my clothing around poison ivy and not bother to tell me until I was covered in blisters! Where is the Frau who would antagonize large beasts just for fun? The Frau whose idea of a road is the face of a cliff! You were the one that told me that no dark artifact – that _Verloren´s Scythe_ could never, ever tame you! And here you are letting the owner of that scythe, the person you _stole it from_, make you cower like some child in need of his mother!"

That was when he slapped Frau, open palm on a pale cheek, with such force the blond staggered back.

"Stop acting like a child and do something about it! At least the recent broken version of Frau had the gall to punch the Military Chairman in the face! You, you do nothing but sulk around and whine! We've all lost someone important to us in this fiasco! Some of us lost our loved ones twice already! Do _not _act as if you are the only one!"

Castor breathed heavily, hands still held before him with no words to accentuate. After a moment of staring helplessly to startled blue eyes, he dropped his hands, straightened his back and took back his professional calm from whatever rock it had crawled under to escape his outburst.

Clearing his throat, the puppeteer straightened his robes and avoided Frau's stare.

"Well…yes. I was hoping seeing Hakuren would help you get over this quicker but it seems I was mistaken and only made it worse. My one mistake was leaving you here by yourself. Come," he held out a gloved hand in invitation, "I know what you need."

* * *

**A/N: That could so be taken the wrong way. I also wish I could've seen your guys faces once you read the first part xD Oh, I am evil. I epically lag NL's updates and I give you guys that! Oh…I love me. **

**M'kay! Well, 2.9K words on this chapter, so I think it's good enough for a start, no?**

**When will FrauTei fluffiness make an epic comeback? I dunno. But something tells me that the amount of reviews I get helps a lot :0 Burupya told me so. **

**Guys...should this story be rated R?**


	20. Factoids

**A/N: Gawd. This update would've gotten to you guys sooner, but I was lazy with editing and stuffs. I should be shot. Anywho, I think I got my muse back! Kinda… In a way. I give it three days. **

**Next point: sorry to all you smut-readers~ this story is staying T, because that's how I started, and that's how I'll finish. So I shall preserve the cute epic Frito fluffiness, and just, you know, have nondescript suggestive scenes and lots of swearing. Lots and lots of swearing.**

**Next point: the timeline for this story is **_**during **_**the Bishop Exams, not **_**after**_**. Or **_**would **_**be during if I didn't take canon and completely twist it like Play-Doh, mixing it will all the other different color clay because I just **_**had **_**to make a freaking Play-Doh pizza. Keeping that in mind, disregard any facts I've introduced to this story that do not correspond. I'll re-edit my chapters later, fix my mistakes.**

**And ending: I LOVE YOU GUYS~ Oh, your reviews are amazing, even though it's my AWESOMENESS that has astounded ALL OF YOU ;D Haha! Kidding~ All of you, thank you, for taking the time to even **_**read **_**this story. It means a lot to me, makes me happy. And even though I don't really…reply to every review I get, since I'm such a lazy butt, I appreciate each and every review. Whether they're giant paragraphs, or just one word. All of you, out there, reading this, are the sole reason this story is still going, still **_**alive**_**. I would've given up on it long ago if it weren't for so many people wanting to see this continue :) Have virtual cookies! *throws a giant batch into the air***

Chapter 20

Factoids

Word Count: 2, 477

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It was in the middle of a meeting when he first heard it. The sound was faint, barely noticeable, but as Frau's mind was not exactly on the steady flow of voices around, it captivated his attention like an angler's hook, and left him floundering for answers the moment it disappeared.

The blond was seated in a grand chair at the head of a rectangular table. Each of the fourteen seats were occupied, each face with a different level of sobriety and irritation. With an elbow on the armrest of his chair, and his cheek cradled in his upturned palm – Frau was the picture of boredom, and didn't even try to hide it.

He picked at a loose white thread on his robes with his free hand, only part of his focus was on the representative to the Second District Clergy, hearing the man ramble on and on about statistics, logistics, auditing, and some other mumbo-jumbo he could barely understand. But with Castor and Labrador at his right and left, Frau knew his paying attention wasn't required. At these sorts of meetings, the blond was only present as a formality.

And while he was in the middle of doing nothing, in the middle of the old man's rant about treaties, especially with the hostility the rest of Barsburg has against the First District, Frau heard a bell. A sweet, simple sound. Charming, heart breaking. It rung through the blond's body, it calmed his distraught heart, stilled his mind, enveloped him in a loving heat so tender he nearly choked on the deep, excruciating pain it caused him.

But, instead, he jerked away, almost falling with the chair but somehow managed to scramble to his feet. There was a pause where no one said anything, where Frau panted heavily, and looked frantically around as if the answer to all of life's problems would manifest itself before him.

"Archbishop," Labrador moved to push his chair and stand, but Frau quickly raised a gloved hand in a sign to stop him, his other over his face in a vain attempt to hide his startled expression and the mist clouding his icicle blue eyes.

"I'm fine – please continue," Frau coughed into his hand to mask the hitch in his voice.

"Perhaps we're due for a recess," Castor spoke from his right, stacking his papers neatly without raising his head to address the people around him. There was a moment when the clergy seated around cast doubtful glances at one another, and then Castor spoke again.

"I'm sure there are refreshments in the cafeteria, should any of you like something to drink." His tone was forceful, not suggestive. And soon the whole room was filing out; a few complaints were hissed in low whisper, others grumbled loud enough for the assistant archbishop to hear. He paid them no mind, instead he twisted Frau's robe in his fist to prevent the man from escaping.

"I need to speak with you," was his scolding tone, and the archbishop grumbled childishly as he plopped himself back down on his seat.

"Whaddaya want?"

Frau's leg bounced impatiently as he tapped fingers on the chair's armrest. He kept his frowning glare on anywhere but Castor, and soon found a better distraction when Labrador mysteriously returned with tea. He questioned, more for the sake of doing so than for actually hearing the answer, when the bishop had escaped the room and bring tea of all things, but received a cheery: "it's a secret" and decided it had probably been better not to have asked.

He sipped from his tea as he felt Castor's unwavering gaze. He knew the man wanted him to snap, but he wouldn't give the puppeteer the satisfaction of watching it happen. He would not speak unless spoken to, and he certainly wouldn't be the one to initiate any awkward conversation. So he kept his mouth shut.

That lasted all of two minutes.

"What the fucking hell do you want?" he snarled, finally stealing a glance towards the russet.

Calmly, Castor took a sip from his tea, setting the ceramic down on the saucer with a tiny _TINK_. "Language, Frau," he chastened in a light tone.

"Oh that's fucking rich, coming from you," the blond snorted and finished what remained in his dainty little cup. Labrador took it from him before he had a chance to break it.

"I've fixed my mannerisms since that day, I suggest you do the same," he glared, the hand hidden underneath the table on his lap fisted tightly.

"I've always been like this," Frau stated almost proudly at the same time Labrador voiced his opinion of: "He's always been like this."

Castor directed his glare to the gardener who smiled innocently behind his cup.

"What I am trying to say is that you're Archbishop –."

"Archbishop against my will," Frau reminded.

"Archbishop against his will," Labrador repeated, which only caused Castor to grind his teeth together.

"What is up with you two?"

"Castor-san, I may not speak for Frau-kun, but I'm tired. Why must we always be so serious around each other?" the bishop sighed, slumping against his seat and very uncharacteristically glaring at the puppeteer.

The russet straightened himself, attempting at a cold, calculating façade but failed at hardening the look in his eyes. He was tired of everything as well.

"We have a district to run," he pleaded in a harsh whisper, shifting his line of sight between the only other two people in the room. "And Frau needs to act like the Archbishop he's supposed to be. We finally managed to get assistance from the other districts; I will _not _allow your childish behavior to ruin these negotiations."

"We shouldn't even be _having _negotiations," Frau growled, absentmindedly playing with a piece of string he pulled from his clothing. "This is a church. They represent other churches. They should help without there needing to be _~negotiations~_." If later asked, Frau would deny every having performed any 'jazz hands'.

"Frau-kun has a point," Labrador sighed, eyes drifting towards the ceiling. "Besides, the money we received from Ayanami-san should cover most of our expenses."

"I'd rather not use that unless absolutely necessary," Castor mumbled as he took to drawing doodles on the margin of his notes.

"So you're proposing to take as much as we can from other districts?" Frau raised an eyebrow, directing his question towards the puppeteer.

"Well when you put it that way…"

"I see what you're doing."

Russet and blond turned their attention toward Labrador who was seated forward, elbow on the table and his chin cradled in his palm. The wavy locks that framed his pale face would have made him seem all too innocent if it were not for the odd smirk pulling the corner of his lips and a devious little glint in his hazy mauve eyes.

Castor sat properly, if a bit leaned forward, while Frau continued to slouch further in his seat. His expression was more curious while Castor's was cautious.

"I do not know –."

"Yes, you do," he smiled this time, sweetly, as he reclined back in his seat. "That was why I saw no mention of the currency we received from the First District among the Church's finances."

Blue eyes darted back and forth, not following the conversation for the life of him. Then something snapped in place.

"You want these negotiations to go well, not for money we have or can get on our own," here he paused, stroking a beard he did not have but attempted to look cool anyways, "but to gain allies against the First District." Here he grinned. "You sneaky sonnavabitch."

"I am not trying to gain _allies_," Castor snapped, both hands fisted on top of the table. "Merely…comrades." He looked away embarrassedly at the incredulous looks he was receiving. "We could be attacked by the First District again," he hissed, taking turns in glaring at both of the smirking males. "Especially since –."

Labrador cleared his throat loudly. But even if it hadn't been said, the disappearance of Frau's grin, replaced by something nostalgic, told both that the Archbishop wasn't as dense as they made him out to be.

Teito was still missing, after so many weeks, and he was still a liability to their district. Still something Ayanami was searching for and who knew when, or if, the man would relent. Or how far he would go to get the carrier of the Eye of Mikhail back. Wherever the boy may be.

"Especially since Frau punched the Chairman's Lieutenant," Castor finished lamely. Then the awkward silence descended.

"Frau," Labrador spoke cautiously, peeking at the blond from underneath lilac bangs, but the man didn't show signs of having heard. The bishop bravely carried on regardless. "Are you okay?"

"I swear," Frau chuckled humorlessly, thin lips stretched across bleached teeth, their ends oddly sharp that it transformed a false grin into something malevolent. "If I am asked that one more time, just once more, I will so _not _be okay. Can we finish this meeting already? I have better shit to do than waste my time with pompous, god-fearing bishops."

_.o7Ghost.o7Ghost.o7Ghost._

Time was passing in an odd way within the Seventh District of the Barsburg Empire. At times Archbishop Frau felt time moved too quickly, other times it felt as if it moved too slowly, especially with the erection of the District's Chapel and Zehel's Memorial still in progress.

It was requested that the memorial be expanded, and the blond bishop was still in the process of trying to convince the people that they should expand the Chapel instead, and compress the Memorial, but they were having none of that.

A rumor had spread that their Archbishop, the one that bravely went forth to bestow God's punishment on the First District, was a reincarnated form of the ghost who severs bonds of misfortune.

(Castor had a field day with that; between the hysterical laughter and the pure _malice _in his eyes, Frau had been certain the man had finally lost his mind and was more than prepared to murder him. Thank someone that should Frau disappear, people would notice. Then again…Castor could just create a doll and replace him, couldn't he?)

And to show their gratitude, or something along those lines, they wished to have a proper place to worship him.

_Worship him_.

Not Zehel but _Frau_.

If it hadn't been for Labrador pulling him off stage and away from the microphone, he would have questioned their sanity and said some not so nice things about their moms.

But, as it were, their mothers were left out of the city meeting.

Frau didn't know what disturbed him more: the fact that his secret was exposed – though they had _no _evidence to support their claims, just testimony from the surviving bishops who saw him wielding a scythe (which, seriously, anyone could do if they put their minds to it), or that they wanted to _worship_ him for something _clearly _against the will of the Chief of Heaven.

Where he was suppose to forgive and pray for their souls, he set out on a pitiful rage and slaughtered. They really should reconsider allowing him to remain as Archbishop. But they trusted him, Lance had told him bitterly one day. They looked up to him, held him in some glorified manner.

It made Frau sick to his stomach. He had never wanted this. Any of it.

Certainly, he played the part of an egotistical, well, jerk, but that was mostly for show. Of course, he believed himself one of the handsomest things on the planet, with a killer smile and rock-hard abs how can one not? But that was beside the point. He enjoyed his life behind the scenes. Where he was hardly noticed. Where life was peaceful and calm. He guarded his Father's flock from the sidelines, because he was something that should _not _be considered holy, pure. He was a tainted child of Verloren, all the Ghost's were.

And the Scythe possessing him, craving the slaughter of an innocent soul, Frau was the worst one of all. He shouldn't be praised, he shouldn't be worshiped. And damn them all if they build that Memorial without his permission as Archbishop. He would tear down that monstrosity brick by brick himself if they do. The building would remain small and simple, and the statue of Zehel would be put off being made until the chapel was finished. These people needed their God, not a Ghost.

"Well don't blow a fuse, Archbishop-sama," a mocking voice shattered Frau's concentration, and directed his irritated attention onto a blond man leaning against an archway in the hallway Frau had taken refuge from his life of responsibility.

Once certain that he captivated the archbishop's attention, Lance took to inspecting his nails for any grime left over from his day's manual labor, even though the dim light within the hallway cast shadows everywhere and made the task near impossible.

"What the hell is that suppose to mean?" Frau scoffed and went to inspecting his boots, crushing clumps of dirt with his thumb from his sitting position on the ground.

"You seemed to be thinking too hard. Didn't want that cute brain of yours to, you know, _pouw_," gloved fists opened dramatically, and fingers danced, "explode."

"Maybe you should try it," Frau grinned spitefully. "You know, think? And stop giving us blonds a bad name."

"Now why on earth would you _assume _that it's _me _doing the slandering? I'm not the one in love with myself."

"Coulda fooled me," the archbishop mumbled as he stomped the heel of his boot into the ground to rid himself of excess mud.

"Is it wrong for a man to love his hair?"

At that, Frau chuckled, a light defeated sound that stole his energy away. He had enough of bickering with Lance, but as that was their relationship, since the pompous man was _set _on being his "rival", there was nothing he could do. "What do you want, Lance?" He asked instead, rubbing an eye as if that could make his drowsiness disappear. Even though he knew not what hour it was, or even what day, Frau was certain he was going days without sleep.

"Labrador asked me to check up on you, since he's busy at the hospital."

"Why does everyone assume I need a _babysitter_?" he scoffed, rolled his head back against the wall, and turned partially to Lance's figure in the archway.

Instead of a witty and sarcastic riposte pouring off Lance's tongue like something akin to honey (since it seemed like rudeness was second nature to him), he asked with a tone more reserved for someone who actually _cared_: "You seem desperate and depressed, Frau. And I know, for a fact, those two emotions combined can never lead to anything good."

* * *

**A/N: This chapter was pointless, but good news! New update in two weeks! It's gonna be another pointless chapter, but I need to get rid of the non-romantic plot I have going. Here's a sneak preview:**

"I _saw _Teito," Labrador spoke softly, delicately. "He was…in a room. It was a small room, square. There was a window across from the doorway, blocked out by a black plastic bag, I think. The room was bare, aside from a single chair in the center."

"No, no. I don't want to hear. No."

"He was there," Labrador continued, attempting to consol Frau by excluding the condition he saw Teito in. "Along with Ayanami-san."


	21. Support

**A/N: I hate o7. So I've been catching up on my manga reading…and…when is the plot going to MOVE. I love Teito, I do, but I don't care about his background! I wanna know how Frau died Dx I'm tired of speculating. Geez.**

**On a more important note: HAS ANYONE READ CHAPTER 73 of 07-Ghost? That black haired dude looks like FRAU! That has **_**got **_**to be Frau's dad! Or, like, relation. No, I'm sticking with dad (my fangirlism won't allow anything else, not even uncle). I knew Frau got his blondiness from his mother x3 If I just ruined it for some of you who haven't (or don't) read it up to that point, I apologize. I just got so EXCITED! I squeeled… it was embarrassing.**

**Chapter 21**

**Support**

**Word Count**: 3, 583

_Warning: Frau curses, A LOT. Along with Castor. They kinda…yeah. I'll just let you guys read._

* * *

"You need to tell me what's going on, Frau."

Sitting on the ground, his back pressed against the wall, Frau laughed into the air, something joyous yet bordering on delirious. The laughter continued for sometime, to the point where the blond was bending over, arms snaked around his abdomen in a failed attempt to ease the pain splitting his sides. Tears collected in the corners of his eyes and eyelashes as he attempted to blink the moisture away.

And once he began to wonder what was so damn _funny_ that he would laugh like a complete psychopath,and with nothing coming to mind, Frau slowly calmed down, his arms falling at his sides as his head rested against the wall.

Then he grinned, looked to Lance with an expression akin to melancholy, and turned away, eyes kept forward and lips pulled into a charming little smile.

"You're not going to tell me anything, are you?" Lance questioned though it took the tone of someone stating fact.

Frau shook his head.

"Figured," the blond bishop sighed, "Told Labrador as much. But he didn't believe me. One would think he would understand your mood swings better than me."

Frau felt a bit awestruck at Lance's calm behavior, taking the archbishop's lunatic behavior in stride. He would have applauded if it wasn't Lance of all people.

"Perhaps I shall take my leave then," the bishop turned in place, a hand rose in a silent farewell, and he was beginning to advance forward when Frau called out to him. Lance paused but did not turn to the man behind him.

"If –," Frau began after a lengthy pause, certain that the stalling and the inquiry itself was his dwindling confidence reaching out to misery for some company. He would have scolded himself, called himself every demeaning word he could think of for his recent behavior, but he managed to bite his tongue and hold off his verbal lashing for the boundaries of his room. "If you were Archbishop, instead of me, what would you have done differently?"

The question hung in the air, neither clergyman moved to acknowledge the other's presence. Instead, Lance spoke to the air before him as milk-chocolate eyes glared at something unseen. He wasn't certain what exactly the current archbishop was fishing for: a warm response or a mocking one, but Lance decided that Frau didn't deserve the answer he was searching for.

"I certainly wouldn't be hiding in a hallway wishing for an easy way out."

Once Lance's receding steps blended into the silence hanging around Frau, the archbishop fished the pack of cigarettes hidden beneath his robes. He had the small stick cradled between his lips, ready to ignite it and allow blissful tobacco smoke to fill his lungs and calm his nerves, but he couldn't bring himself to do it.

Frau ripped the cigarette from his lips, crumbled it within his gloved hand, and littered the polished ground with bits of white paper and brown tobacco. He fiddled with the packet in hand for some time, reading the warning labels and wondering faintly how the smoking would affect him if he couldn't really die. Would his lungs just fill with black tar until it made breathing difficult, and he would live with that disability until…well, until what? He always hated contemplating his death, especially when he didn't understand the whole concept.

Calmer now, having exhausted his troubled mind, Frau slipped a new cigarette between his lips and ignited it without a second thought. Indulging in a small grunt, absentmindedly chewing on the filter, the archbishop rose to his feet, dusted his slacks, and confidently strode towards the District's courtyard.

_.o7Ghost.o7Ghost.o7Ghost._

Later that day, when Frau decided to invite himself to dinner, three strange things happened. If he knew what had been in store for him, lurking in the shadows, he wouldn't have invited himself to dinner at all.

But on his way to the dinning hall, Lance had approached him and apologized for his blunt words and rude manner. The archbishop confusingly accepted the apology with a simple: "No problem." And watched the man _politely _excuse himself and walk away.

If that had not been bizarre enough to make pigs fly, the next strange thing had happened during dinner.

Castor and Hakuren had joined him at his table, without asking for permission, and immediately bombarded him with business talk – or he assumed it was business, _sounded _like business, had business-y words and phrases. Frau had listened on reluctantly, hearing them comment on the progress of the District's restoration, rehabilitation, or whatever word they used, partnerships and allies within other Districts, and their relationship with the First District, as well as with the royal Barsburg family.

But that wasn't the strange occurrence that had happened during dinner, it was when he had a total of three eyefish in his mouth, wondering how many more he could fit without choking, when the soft melody of bells tickled his ears.

In his surprise, he swallowed two whole and began to choke on the third. Castor, pointlessly, pounded his back until Frau threatened him with a fork.

Now, on its own, that would not have been so strange. They lived within a church – bells were a common form of signal within its walls. They woke the sun and District, signal commencement of mass, class, signaled the commencement of the day's chores, of breakfast, lunch and dinner. Signaled the final call before the doors closed.

But these bells were different. Soothing, soft, endearing. Frau experienced déjà vu as he searched for a physical producer of said bells before he remembered that the same thing had happened that morning, during the meeting. Now he regretted not explaining to Castor and Labrador what had gone through his mind the first time he heard the Bells because, now, he remembered nothing of the incident but that it took place.

Then, to top of the night and tie it with a big bow of crazy, Labrador came rushing into the dinning hall while Frau attempted to calm Castor's concern because Frau, apparently, had looked "like a child who was robbed of their stuffed toy."

It was during the part where Frau was denying being on any psyche medication that Labrador pounded the table with both his fists, glared at the Archbishop, and cryptically declared, "I know."

"You know what?" was Frau's quick response as he raised an eyebrow, fork still leveled over his meal since the bell incident. Castor looked between the two before stealing a glance at Hakuren - the boy was peacefully pushing around a pinkish flower around his salad, not even bothering to be a part of the conversation.

"I know!" The glare vanished, and something bordering on desperation turned Labrador's eyes a soft mauve color and contorted his face.

"That's very nice and all, Lab, that you _know_," Frau waved his fork in the air, attempting a look of indifference against Labrador's defiant pout, "but what I'm asking is that this thing you," here he stabbed his fork towards the gardener standing beside Hakuren, "know is relevant to anything I might know. Ya know?"

"Frau, you are being ridiculous." Labrador sighed as he rolled his eyes for an added effect.

"That should be my line. I didn't come busting into the Mess Hall claiming that I '_know_'." Across from him, Hakuren stifled a laugh.

"I know what's happened Teito-kun."

Hakuren's laughter vanished in an instant, Castor was so startled that he showed it, and Frau's distant, calm expression contorted and soured at every passing second. He leaned forward, slowly, towards Labrador, before stabbing his fork into the wooden table. The young blond visibly flinched and cowered: chin pressed against his chest as his shoulders rose. Castor jumped a bit but easily regained his composure, eyes glaring from underneath his cascade of red-hued brown hair towards the blond beside him. Frau kept his unwavering icicle stare on the terrified but defiant bishop standing before him.

Seconds passed, and Frau counted them with every rise and fall of Labrador's chest. The petite man's glare took a darker shade, challenging, before their Archbishop inelegantly pushed away from his seat and sauntered towards the courtyard.

The room gave a unified sigh of relief, most uncertain why it had suddenly felt terribly cold within the Hall but terribly glad it had ended. A few moments passed before Castor followed Labrador and Frau, instructing Hakuren to return to his room and take a much-needed rest.

The puppeteer arrived just as the yelling began, Frau obviously furious while Labrador battled with distress. Their voices rose higher and higher, each trying to get their say in the conversation though the way Labrador seemed to chase after the taller man, it was apparent that Frau wanted nothing to do with the conversation. He caught sight of Castor approaching their group and pointed an accusing finger towards him, a growl in his voice as he yelled at the bespectacled man.

"You! You're the fucking one that told me to forget about the fucking _brat_, not even giving me the peace of mind to go _looking _for him that time we returned from the First District, and now this _fucker _comes up with this bullshit just when I'm finally getting the stupid piece of shit out of my _mind_? You two fucking sadists," he snarled at both approaching bishops, "better stay the _fuck _out of my life from this point forward. I'm finally turning my _fucking life __around_," here he sighed and turned towards the sky in desperation, "never thought I would ever say that, ever, within my lifetime."

He turned back to his approaching problems, "and now you come up with this bullshit." Labrador made move to defend himself but Frau skillfully interrupted before the man could even take in a breath to speak. "I don't care. I don't care where the brat is, what the brat is fucking doing. Or who he's _fucking_, just stop before I seriously pound your face into your goddamn _skull_."

Castor approached Frau, clenching and unclenching his fists, as they stood nose to nose, neither backing off. He could feel the faint heat radiating off his archbishop, could see the faint droplets still in his hair, revealing the shower he took before coming to dinner. He could see the faint redness spreading like spider-webs across his sclera and almost felt sorry for the man before he heard the animalistic growling vibrating across Frau's broad chest and decided the blond had a lesson he needed learnt.

"Can you _stop _attacking Labrador like some unruly little child ," he rushed underneath his breath as he glared from beneath his shaggy hair, only to be interrupted half way by Frau's own attack of "Can you stop actin' all mature an' shit when we all know that's a goddamn lie ."

"Can you think about someone else for once in your pathetic excuse for a life !" he snapped, an edge to his tone as it took a louder pitch.

"Can you?" Frau full out yelled.

Castor was taken aback for a moment before he regained his composure, a glare in his eyes and a growl in his voice as he snapped at the Archbishop. "Of course I care about other people other than myself. I've been taking care of you these past _fucking weeks_, you ignorant, churlish, ungrateful little _brat_!" he spat the word like venom, sadistically satisfied when the blond suppressed a flinch. "All this time I've been attempting to comfort you, to consol and "

"Oh what a boat-load of _crap_ "

"It is more than anything you've ever done for me!"

"Here we go with the Lazette thing again."

"YES! Here we go again, you selfish, crude brute!"

"You act as if you're the only one "

"I'm the only one who was not allowed to mourn her death "

"Because you're the only one who _didn't_. When you found out she died, you could've but you didn't. You decided _revenge _was a better route. I bet you're _glad _she's pushin' up daisies "

"Say that one more time, you fucking son of a _bitch_."

"I bet you're _glad_ _"_

"Stop it!"

Labrador rushed in between them, using his depleting strength to push them apart, discreetly attempting to wipe away tears with the sleeve of his robes. The two easily stepped away, glaring at anything but each other. Labrador stifled a sob, grinding his teeth together as he attempted to compose himself.

It took a while, but the simple fact that the petite man was acting like a child who had just watched their parents fight, it was enough to calm Frau and Castor though not enough to quell their anger towards each other.

"Why do you two always fight until you draw blood?" the bishop's voice hitched because of his dried throat, but he courageously carried on, head held high and defiant. "You two are family "

"That fucking asshole started it "

"Let me finish," Labrador snapped at his archbishop without making eye contact. He took a calming breath before he repeated his request, quieter and calmer this time around. When he heard no signs of someone waiting to interrupt, he continued. "There is a point where arguing can bond two together, make them stronger, but not like this. I have seen the way you two communicate with one another other, how you two collaborate. It's flawless, near perfect coordination. Do _not _spoil something so precious over trivial "

"Lazette's death is nothing trivial "

"The way you spout it about, Castor, certainly makes it seem so!" Labrador spat, glaring at the puppeteer from the corner of his eyes. "I highly doubt she would approve of your behavior over her death." He noticed the fury contorting Castor's expression and continued, at a higher tone to drown out the man's protests, "And I highly doubt she wanted to be avengedby having the entire First District _slaughtered_. She was a kind, lovely girl," Labrador lowered his tone, softened his expression, "do not use her death as an excuse to release your frustrations and fears."

Brows furrowed, forehead creased, eyes narrowed, and lips pulled into a feral snarl, Castor took a threatening step forward before he was forced to halt by Frau's words cutting through him like a sickle.

"A few moment's ago you were defending him. What happened?"

Shock raised eyebrows, smoothed wrinkles and straightened lips. Then, slowly, eyebrows fell, lips dipped, and, before they could see the raw emotions contort the rest of his face, Castor placed a gloved hand over his eyes, shoulders slouched as if his pristine white bishop robes were too heavy for his frail form to carry.

Castor opened his mouth to speak, but closed it after a moment of silence. Prompted by encouragement he could not see but certainly feel for whatever strange reason, he removed his hand and grimaced at the light droplets staining his leather gloves.

"Then what," he croaked, and cleared his throat before continuing. "Then what am I suppose to do.?"

"Help this idiot over here," Labrador sighed contently, unadulterated affection spreading across his features. He silently watched as blond and russet stared at each other, both weary but seeming to realize where their smallest friend was going with this. "He has a chance at something you've experienced with Lazette. Yes, it will be difficult watching Frau experience a familiar happiness that you once possessed, but is it not better that _someone _be allowed such a thing than no one at all?

We live in cruel times, Castor. We've seen cruelty happen before our eyes; does that mean we must also bestow it upon others? If not because it is your duty as a messenger of God," Labrador approached Castor, took his hand and tugged him forward until he was standing before Frau. "Then because you are his best friend. And in this world of deceit and lies, we must cherish and foster the few friendships we have."

For one beautiful, heart meltingly, adorable moment, all three bishops basked in Labrador's sweet, honest words, feeling lighter and content, before Frau felt awkward, and in an attempt to regain his masculinity, interrupted the "moment" with his untimely, and horrible, humor.

"Lab, you sound like a fortune cookie."

Castor groaned and rolled his eyes, Labrador slapped his forehead but his smile remained in place. And after another moment of basking in Frau's stupidity, Labrador frowned and turned to his Archbishop. The blond visibly tensed, stood to his full-height and squared his jaw, appearing as if he was preparing to be punched on the nose.

"I _saw _Teito," Labrador spoke softly, delicately.

"Wait, _saw,"_ Castor frowned while Frau continued to act as if the information meant nothing.

"I know," the gardener direction his attention towards the russet. "I thought I had lost the powers I received as a Ghost, but it appears they have been dormant until I recuperated most of my eyesight. I assume it has something to do with my power's connection to my physical eyesight."

"So you actually saw Teito-kun." Castor faintly wondered why he was the one asking the questions, but assumed Frau was currently in shock. He knew he would be if he suddenly heard Lazette isn't really dead.

"He was…in a room…" Labrador pressed a finger to his temple, and struggled to remember as if it had been a dream. "It was strange, this vision. I could freely move within it, unlike the rest that often appear cryptic and flashes of pictures."

"That is certainly odd," Castor mused. But stealing a glance towards Frau told him he should muse on his own time. "So, what exactly did you See?"

"The room was small, square. There was a window across from the doorway, blocked out by some sort of black plastic, I think. The room was bare, aside from a single chair in the center."

Frau turned his back towards them, a hand on his forehead. He suddenly felt feverish.

"Frau?" Castor questioned, concern icing his tone.

"Nnnh," the blond shook his head, battling with something inside of him. "No, no. I don't want to hear. No."

"He was there," Labrador continued, attempting to consol Frau by excluding the condition he saw Teito in. "Along with Ayanami-san and his lieutenant. I was able to walk out of the room; they were in a small apartment; the houses appeared very simple, like that of lower class. There was a sign visible from outside one of the windows, hanging from the building. It read "Butcher's Choice". The sign was very rundown, chipped and faded. I believe the room was at least three stories high; the Barsburg Military tower was visible."

That was as far as Labrador's explanation went, having found nothing else that could direct Frau in the right direction, if the man was even planning on going after the boy. Labrador was certain he would, but as seconds passed and nothing happened, he began to doubt Frau's constant need to save Teito. He turned to Castor for assistance, found the man frowning at the blond's back, clearly thinking about something.

At that point, the gardener couldn't decide what exactly the man was plotting when he shocked both by telling Frau he shouldn't go looking for the brunet.

"What?" Labrador gasped, replaying the conversation he had with both about supporting each other, and wondered if he had not been clear enough.

"Yeah," Frau looked over his shoulder, "_what?_" He prodded the thin ice they were standing on with a small snap of tongue; perhaps he had heard wrong.

"You shouldn't go," Castor repeated, accentuating each syllable to make sure he wouldn't be misunderstood. He caught Labrador's shocked expression and steeled his owned, drawing himself up in defense. "Yes, I just said Frau shouldn't go. We currently have bad relations with the First District. If Frau is caught snooping around, we might end up going to _war _with them. Especially if he claims that they wrongly have Teito within their custody."

"The brat is not some negotiating _token_ "

"The moment he stepped out of our borders and into the First District he became so," the man retorted with a passive expression.

"Look, you cold-hearted sonnavabitch "

"This will _not_ be discussed, Frau. If I find out you have left the Seventh District on this stupid little mission, come hell or high water, I _will _denounce you in front of the Pope and make sure you are labeled a traitor, stripped from your title of Archbishop and have your Bishop's Pass revoked. I will make _sure_ you will _never _be allowed to step foot within the Seventh District again."

"Are you honestly making me choose between my District and Teito?"

"How you perceive it is your own," Castor returned Frau's glare.

"This is not what I meant " Labrador exclaimed, exasperated but was rudely interrupted by Castor's sharp tongue.

"What I've said is final. Not one foot outside this District, Frau. The Pope will be arriving in a few days time; I will _not _lie to him for your sudden disappearance on such an important appointment. Do I make myself clear?"

"You can't be serious," Frau nearly begged, uncertain of why he was doing it but part of his conscience made him crave for Castor's support and approval on the matter.

"Not one foot outside the District. That is where my decision rests and how this conversation ends. Good night, Frau, Labrador." With an incline of the head to both, Castor turned and walked away.

* * *

**A/N: I made TWO guys cry. Oh, I should get an award for that. Or scolded. THIS IS MY FIRST FANFICTION, LEAVE ME ALONE! I know guys don't act like this, I just couldn't help myself.**


	22. Immortal

**A/N: You guys have been SO nice to me, that I wanted to update early ;-; (yes, I realize this is a VERY early update, but I'm sure I won't get any complaints for it~) What you've all been waiting...five (six?) chapters for, TEITO'S IN THIS ONE! ...sorta. Tee-Hee.  
**

**A/N2: I feel a bit...jealous that everyone knows Gido but me. Yes; so those of you that pointed that out for me can apologize now, thanx :D (I'm kidding, guys! Thanks for helping the idiot realize she might have found a new favorite character~)**

**A/N3: I edited this thing...once, btw. Hope the grammar/punctuation isn't...crap.  
**

_Chapter 22_

_Immortal_

_Word Count: 3, 650_

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Restless steps wore tracks into the lush carpet of Archbishop Jio's room. Blue-hued lunar light filtered in through stain-glass windows, casting a beautiful kaleidoscope of colors across the dark room and furniture. Hours had gone by since the conversation Frau had with Castor and Labrador, if that could even be called a conversation at all.

The current Archbishop replayed the night's event over and over in his mind, wondering why Castor seemed so opposed to the rescue of the boy. The man was certainly concerned for Frau when Labrador was retelling his vision, especially when Frau felt like vomiting at the thought of Teito being strapped to some chair in a dingy room, having God knows what done to him. And then he comes back with his opposition, telling it to Frau as if he had all the authority in the world. Last time Frau checked, _he _was Archbishop, not Castor. But still… He wanted the man's support; they were supposed to be friends, right?

Well, of course they were friends. He would never admit it, because their friendship wasn't like that, but they both knew. They shared a history together, no matter how small. They both supported each other through the bishop's exams, no matter how many times they had to retake it. When Castor fell into his constant depression, Frau picked him up and reminded him of everything he did have. Whenever Frau was at war with himself, Castor found ways to alleviate his pain and get him through it. They constantly fought, but at the end of the day, they forgave each other, without any words having to be said. Just one look from across the courtyard, across a room, and they knew they had been forgiven. And only on those few times when the fighting would take dangerous levels did they bribe each other for forgiveness. Frau could be easily won with alcohol and his stupid magazines. Castor with new sewing equipment and peaches, the man's secret addiction.

So Frau didn't understand why Castor was acting the way he was. Perhaps he _was _bitter about the whole Lazette thing. If he couldn't have happiness with the one he loved, then no one else deserved it either.

But was Castor really that petty?

Frau never believed so. How could he? In his eyes, Castor was a selfless, protective human being with a maternal-complex. Perhaps this was Castor being concerned? Frau shook his head at the thought. No, the man had given his reasoning for his opposition, and it was just so he wouldn't have to lie to the Pope.

The more Frau thought about it, the more furious he became with the russet, the more he realized that a man who plays with dolls couldn't deny him his liberties. He stopped his pacing to gaze out into the dark sky. Sleep was still a foreign thing, and as such, he was not tired. His mind was still turning gears without the grogginess of fatigue to slow him down. He approached the stain-glass windows, took a moment to wonder if Jio ever just gazed down into the courtyard when he had too much to think about, before he went back to his current dilemma.

Frau wouldn't put it past Castor to alert the guards around the District to alert him should their Archbishop escape. And because of the increased security, it made it nearly impossible for anyone to sneak in, let alone sneak out. He cursed his awesome security strategies before reverting to the drawing board.

There was the possibility of negotiating with one of the guards.

But under Castor's questioning, they would squeal like little pigs. And Castor _would _question them tomorrow. Probably. Frau couldn't take the chance the man wouldn't.

There came a new problem as the blond realized the russet would most definitely check his room in the morning to see if he was still here. He couldn't very well lock the door and pretend to sleep until noon, Castor would break it down.

Then there was the problem of getting to point A from point B. Frau couldn't go walking, that would take too much time. And riding on a hawkzile was completely out of the question. And he couldn't forget about all the security around the First District. If it had been difficult getting in before the raid, now it would be nearly impossible.

So, mentally making a list of necessities, Frau ticked them off on his fingers.

First, he needed to bypass the guards of his own district.

Second, he needed a fast, quiet form of transportation.

Third, he needed stealth on his side to infiltrate the First District; he certainly didn't want to kill any more military personnel.

Lastly, he needed a double in his room should he not arrive before daybreak.

Four necessities. He twiddled his fingers, uncertain of how the freaking _criminals _manage to sneak out of the First District and into their own. Teito rode a dying Hawkzile and landed on top of him, Frau couldn't honestly perform the same trick.

Just as he was beginning to give up and go for his pack of cards to play fifty games of Solitaire before dawn grudgingly came around, he caught sight of his unused coffin spread out peacefully beside Jio's four-poster bed.

A human can't go past guards unseen.

But a Ghost certainly can.

_.o7Ghost.o7Ghost.o7Ghost._

Labrador had been unable to accept Castor's behavior. And, in an attempt to believe he couldn't be so cruel, the lilac-haired bishop went after the russet once he quelled his shock. He caught up with the puppeteer outside his room and wasted no time in questioning his motives. Castor wasted time by unnecessarily straightening his robes, and scanning the deserted hallway.

"Where's Frau?" he questioned.

"Don't change the question, Castor. Why did you basically forbid Frau from going after Teito? I Saw the boy; he's within the First District, Frau can find him."

"Labrador, I cannot believe I even have to say it," he spoke in a soft whisper, face inexpressive. "You _saw_ Teito. You are the Prophesizing Ghost, there is no guarantee Teito will even be there if Frau goes in search for him. He will be there too early; Ayanami will catch wind of it and relocate the boy to a different location."

"I've thought about that," the bishop straightened himself, "and I've taken it into consideration. But with my vision returning, my powers are as well though they are slower to recuperate."

Fingers splayed across his temple and eye as Labrador continued, eyes closed and focused "Recently I've had visions of things that have already happened. My mind is recalling the day the First District attacked. The days of mass riot within our District. The day Frau took charge, calmed our distraught home, and brought hope back to its citizens. And now I have seen Teito."

"So you can see the past, basically," Castor mumbled.

"In a sense, I believe so. Things I should have Seen but was unable to until my vision restored to where I no longer need corrective lenses."

Castor frowned, feeling a bit insulted for some reason. But the unintended insult rolled off his back easily, and he simply shrugged. Pulling his key out of his pocket, Castor went through the process of unlocking his door.

"Then that's perfect."

"What?"

Labrador followed Castor into his quarters, noted the empty bottles of alcohol lining the man's room, along with the complete and utter chaos of paper, books, and fabric, along with a doll strikingly similar to the late Lazette. The russet noticed the gardener's line of sight and threw his bishop's robes over the doll in an attempt to cover it. The man coughed awkwardly before moving about to fix his room, or at least attempt at it. Labrador frowned as he watched the man shift through books and papers, stacking them neatly together but not attempting to actually find a proper place for everything. He felt a humanly clench at his slowly beating heart, and before he could question how the other would react, Labrador approached Castor and wrapped his arms around the puppeteer's thin frame.

Under his hands, Labrador could feel the man tense, then slowly relax and wilt against the small comfort.

"If I tell Frau not to do something, he plans his disobedient acts so much better. I'm just worried he would do something reckless if I showed any moral support."

"You could have helped him," Labrador whispered into the space between Castor's shoulder blades.

"Would he have listened? He's quite stubborn, if you haven't realized," the russet chuckled tiredly, raising a gloved hand to place it over a smaller one clutching his thin shirt.

"He's in love," Labrador smiled, unconsciously tightening his arms. "Love makes people do very stupid things."

"If he finds out you said that, he really will punch you in the face."

"Why are you two so emotionally damaged?" the petite man frowned as he pulled back a bit to catch Castor's expression.

"Because, I believe," he smiled sadly, "even when we _were _human, we never understood what it meant."

"What what meant?"

"To be human."

_.o7Ghost.o7Ghost.o7Ghost._

The full moon high above lit Frau's road as he hovered inches over the ground. His black robes fluttered as he sped over land much quicker than he thought possible in Ghost form. His body was safe and sound back in the Seventh District, taking a mandatory nap, where everyone was oblivious to the absence of their Archbishop.

The first Military checkpoint was passed without any real effort, along with the second, third, fourth. Within minutes, Frau was within the border of the First District, passing through the deserted cobble streets. A few dogs barked here and there at his presence, but he paid them no mind as he searched for Labrador's description of the building. He went down the streets, desperation gnawing at his resolve. He knew he couldn't just barge into a home and demand answers, but it was still a difficult thing not to do.

After clearing the west side of the District, separating them by the large streets and the structures of the homes, Frau ghosted towards the east just as the moon was mimicking his actions along the dark sky. Just a lone hooded figure, dragging chains and the muffled screams of tainted souls that had fallen at the hand's of Verloren's Scythe. The Ghost was more than certain he heard a few door bolts being driven home.

Frau felt strange drifting through the world as a Ghost – an odd feeling of being accompanied set him on edge. At every passing moment, he had to suppress the need to peek over his shoulder to see if anyone was following him.

Though no one had explained to him the workings of being a Ghost, he assumed the presence around him was that of the other people who had housed Zehel's ghost within their mortal bodies. Frau understood that he was destined for the same fate, that a part of him would always be with the Zehel, no matter what the afterlife had in store for him. And he had accepted it long ago.

But now all he wanted was an attempt at a human life, and for that, he required a happiness he seemed to find only in Teito.

And Frau hated that. Oh how he _hated _that, but what else could he do. Women and alcohol brought him satisfaction, Teito made his heart feel lighter, made his burdens bearable. Made the world just a tiny shade brighter.

It was his constant presence, the fact that he accepted Frau for the monster he was, that made the blond crave for Teito's hesitant signs of affection. The rare smiles, the hugs… even the genuine tears, shed for the people he cared about - Frau missed all that. He missed walking up to find a tiny bundle of warmth curled beside his coffin, and how those small hands would cling to his shirt once he was laid back in bed, as if Frau would leave again.

He was needed. Wanted. And Frau was helpless to stop the affection that was warming his heart, was calming his soul, and changing him in ways he never thought possible.

Because everyone wanted to feel wanted. To be missed when one left. To be mourned when one died. Just to have someone show _excitement _at one's mere presence, and to see pure pleasure in someone's eyes when one goes above and beyond their expectations. There is no gift greater, especially for a lonely thing like the ghost who severs bonds.

With newfound determination, Frau set forth among the deserted streets. Up and down, up and down. Twisting and turning with the roads, backtracking when he was greeting with dead ends.

And then he saw the sign.

The old rickety sign of a long abandoned butcher's shop. He searched for a way to the third floor, finding some stairs inside the forgotten building. Dust covered everything though the faint trace of some sort of disturbance signaled Frau that there had been people at least using the stairs. How recent, he wasn't sure but rushed forward with all the lightness of a feather.

Fleshless fingers traced invisible lines across the third floor walls, wallpaper dingy and peeled from age and exposure to water. Frau made no noise as he crossed a small hallway, arrived into a small ruined living room area.

A couch, coffee table and the carpet were singed, all thrown towards the hallway as if by a sudden gust of wind. Frau assumed it had something to do with the gaping hole in the kitchen. He passed through the rubble of kitchen furniture, and held his bony hand over the edges of the crumbling wall. Faint traces of heat licked his palm. He pulled back.

Adjacent to the kitchen was another small hallway. To the left was another hole in the wall, a door having been imbedded into the opposing wall. Frau approached, but this time he didn't pause to feel for any heat emitting from the walls.

Just as Labrador had described, but much less disturbing as Frau imagined it, the room seemed to have been left untouched, minus the whole in the wall. The only window was covered, the light bulb hanging from the ceiling remained perfectly still against its dead environment, and the chair remained intact and erect in the middle of the room, bolted down to the ground with simple bands of metal.

Very damaged looking straps on both armrests, and on both front legs of the chair, all four stained with something black. Frau wanted to reach out and touch it, but feared what might happen if he did so. He was still figuring out his powers as a Ghost, he didn't need to find out what might happen if he touched blood, especially Teito's.

If it _was _Teito's blood on the armrests and chair legs.

Realizing he had gotten there too late, Frau suppressed the violent urge to retaliate, to express his anger in a not-so-healthy way, when he heard a bell chime again.

Only then did he realize that was the sound of Teito's collar.

_.o7Ghost.o7Ghost.o7Ghost._

Frau was rushing through dense shrubbery in his human body, the light of day glaring from its position over the horizon. He had left the guarded walls of the Church on a rouse of going to find some firewood; the guards easily allowed him to pass, even raised an eyebrow at his request but said nothing. Frau was certain Castor never contacted anyone about not allowing him to leave. But at least he considered the possibilities and chose the best option.

Rushing into the First District, guns a' blazing, wouldn't have ended well.

Now he was in the outskirts of the Seventh District, having followed the increasing sound of a chiming bell since the First District. He didn't understand how he heard it, or why he was hearing it at all, or how he knew it was Teito signaling him somehow, but decided it was best not to question it. He was still within his district, so it couldn't have been a trap, unless Ayanami was as crazy as they thought he was. But at this point, Frau was desperate and clinging to his last shred of hope.

Branches snagged on his coat, attempting to haul him back and waste his time, but Frau charged on with ruthless determination. The lovely sound was rising, growing into an almost whiny pitch. Frau panted uselessly as he fought with flora, wishing he could have brought his hawkzile through to reach the point of the noise quicker but he couldn't just fly over everything and hope the end to this wild chase had a proper receiving area for his vehicle. So he had ditched it where he could and went rushing through on human legs.

Like a siren's call, Frau blindly followed it – around the curves of the landscape, through dense shrubbery and animal territories. He rested only once when he almost fell off the edge of the land, the void where it dropped into space and the ever-present fog. He backed away slowly, but found the bells chime grew fainter as he did so. He could see no floating landmass away from where he was standing, just white fog shifting and contorting against the wind.

After regaining some of his breath, Frau jogged the edge of the land, a tad proud of himself that he had made it so far running in just a short amount of time. That thought quickly disappeared when he noticed a strip of crumbling land snaking down into the fog-filled void below.

"He's gotta be in there," Frau muttered, and felt his heart jump at the thought. He was feeling oddly excited, and soon his exhaustion was pushed to the back of his mind.

Frau rushed through the crumbling strip of land, unconcerned for his personal safety, even when he entered the white fog. He kept his eyes on his feet and followed the road as it dipped at an angle and curved all about. A few times, he almost stepped into nothing but managed to correct himself at the last minute. The strip of land was just big enough to stand with both feet together. And all too abruptly, the strip extended to reveal a small portion of land.

A single tree was growing on the small patch of land, its leaves and trunk bleached grey that they almost matched its background. Frau took not a single moment to ponder such an abnormality when he caught sight of a petite teen sitting underneath it. Their back was to the trunk, chest rising and falling with obvious exertion.

Teito twitched at Frau's approaching footsteps, and smiled faintly as Frau whispered his name. He was dressed in only a ratty sleeveless shirt and shorts, both his wrists and ankles were worn down to irritated flesh. Toes bent in awkward directions, as well as a few of his fingers. Blood coated patches of him like a second skin; bruises, scars, and open cuts were littered across any exposed skin, and a few disappeared under his clothing as well.

Frau knelt at the boy's bare feet, unsure of what exactly to do now that Teito was right in front of him, alive and breathing though not entirely sound. His throat was parched, and something irritated his eyes. He cleared his throat, but Teito did not move besides his forced breathing. Realizing he had to do something quickly, Frau placed a gloved hand on Teito's forehead, and pushed tangled, messy locks out of the teen's eyes.

"Teito," His voice was just above a whisper, as if afraid this was all just some fucked up dream he had due to his exhaustion and Labrador's words. Frau held his breath, waiting for an answer, when, after a deep agonizing breath, Teito replied though not in the same voice he remembered the boy having.

"_It appears as if I lost the bet,_" another deep breath, "_I do not look forward to my Master's smug attitude once he comes to, Priest."_

Dark eyelashes fluttered open to reveal bright crimson orbs, pupils stretched into fine diamonds. Eyelids remained at half-mast, irritation coming easily to the archangel whenever it involved Frau.

"_Are you just going to stand there like a buffoon, or are you going to take my Master to a hospital? I can only remain conscious for another hour or so, but with you suddenly here, I do not feel like forcing myself._"

"Mikhail?" Frau wondered aloud, but the sudden glare he received made the rest of his questions disappear into the back of his throat.

As gently as he had ever been with anything in his life, Frau took the small body into his arms, a wave of relief washing over him as he continued to stare into Teito's familiar face, though not familiar eyes.

"How badly is he injured?" he asked the archangel, who strangely snuggled against Frau's chest, wincing at every other step Frau took.

"…_it was worse…than before_, _much worse,_" Mikhail commented, eyes open as he watched their safe haven disappear into the white sky. "_They knew he would be searched for so they had no time to persuade my Master into giving them the rest of the stone, the last part of me still with him._"

"…So they took it by force?"

"_I am still here, aren't I, bishop?_"

"And I'm thankful for that," Frau mumbled as he plotted a direct route towards the church.

"_Do not be, Zehel._" Frau looked down to watch an angel cry. "_I was the reason they did this to him._"

"And you're the reason he's here with me now."

"_D-do not make me _slap _y-you, Priest,_" the angle choked on a sob. "_My Master's hand is broken._"

* * *

**A/N: Tee-Hee. See you guys in two weeks! I had written this while waiting in line at the DMV. A whole chapter, seriously. They really need to find a way to improve those lines, and the wait time. Oh, sneak preview~:**

Frau placed kisses along sun-kissed skin, down the rounded edges of Teito's jaw, down the delicate curve of his neck, and bit down at the soft flesh on his shoulder. Teito gave a cry, confused by the pain and jolt of electricity that gripped him firmly and sent his entire body into disarray. Then Frau began to suck at the sore spot, and Teito unwillingly moaned into the cold air. He twitched beneath Frau, unable to remain still as pain and pleasure sung through his veins at the new sensations, all coming to pool at the pit of his stomach and further down.

**A/N: *snickers* (Sorry, I **_**had **_**to do write this last Author's Notes in. Moral obligation, or whatever, See ya!)**


	23. Crumbling Trust

**A/N: Sorry I couldn't get this out on time! I've recently...had some trouble. I'm fine, but I'm sure I won't be in a few days. Just bear with me if I don't update in two weeks. I'll try my _best _to make sure I keep on schedule, but I don't know how to handle this thing I will most likely fall into, so I don't know. But I won't disappear - not anymore. So don't start sharpening your pitchforks :)  
**

**A/N2: In the previous chapter, where Mikhail mentions a lost bet against Teito, it was about whether Frau would find them in time or not. Mikhail, forever doubting Zehel's ability to even function properly, said he wouldn't make it in time. Thank goodness he lost, right? Thought I should make it obvious in case anyone didn't understand, since I don't plan elaborating on it any further.**

**A/N3: Aaaand. There are other concerns that have been raised, like the mysterious collar that comes in and out of this fic. Yes, it's like a mood ring. Suppose to **_**help **_**the idiots with their feelings for each other, but since they've never bothered to figure it out, you weren't meant to figure it out either (but for the sake of you curious readers who like reading into things, and reminding me that I keep forgetting to elaborate on them, this is for YOU). It holds other significances, which I'm sure I pointed out with Frau's adorable tsundere-ness~ And _yes_, Teito HAS lost his collar again -facepalm-  
**

**A/N4: As always, you guys make me feel invincible – **_**incredible**_**, regardless of all the holes in my writing, and my terrible grammar/punctuation xD I treasure all of you, from the regular reviewers, the one-timers, the newbies, and even you lookie-lous~ It AMAZES me whenever I have the chance to check the Traffic for NL. So many PEOPLE! From all OVER THE PLACE! Gawd. Your words of adoration, praise, and criticism never go unnoticed, and I really wish I could reply to all of you – I'm just so LAZY! That's why this story has an age of two (three?) years~**

**A/N5: HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY TO YURI SUZUKI-CHAN~~ Glad I could give you the best present ever xD**

* * *

_Chapter 23_

_Crumbling Trust_

_Word Count: 10, 109 (OHLYSNAPZWTF? That's an update xD)  
_

The first thing Teito thought when consciousness was slowly waking his mind was that he wished to go back to sleep. He did not want to awaken in that dark room – the blackness was something foul and stale, rotten; a strange combination of leather and metal digging into his flesh as he struggled for freedom, and having to face inhumane interrogations, of which he had no answers to give.

If he came to, those questions would be asked again, and Teito wouldn't know how to respond so he would be punished for it. They had already gone and broke all this toes, his nose, a few of his fingers, and shattered his kneecaps. The extent of the rest of his injuries was a mystery. He couldn't even speculate what was bruised, sprained, fractured, or broken. Everything just hurt; he was one giant throbbing ball of pain.

They would probably break the rest of his fingers, or peel off his fingernails – he heard Hyuuga request that.

Teito forced a lump in his throat down, taking a cautious twist of his wrist to see if anyone would pounce on him like a starved lion, but seconds trickled away and there was no malicious laughter, no sarcastic greetings or inquires to his health. Everything felt smooth, soft. His now fully conscious mind began cataloging his injuries.

His head still throbbed, but not as badly as before. His face no longer hurt; shoulders felt supported and relaxed. Fingers moved without much pain. His breathing was still a bit labored but otherwise better than before. And he could feel his toes. Move them even.

Teito chanced the act of opening his eyes, and was startled to find a blue-hued ceiling littered with painted stars. The air was crisp and clean, the teen could even feel a soft wind coming in from somewhere within the room. He turned his head, mindful not to make so much movement, and was more than startled to find a tiny black toy with a broad stitched smile welcoming him in a motionless sort of way. Its white face had dulled a bit in color, but it was a greeting Teito would never forget.

Sore muscles pulled his hand from underneath the covers, and moved un-inflamed fingers towards the doll. For a moment, emerald eyes marveled at the thinness of his fingers, unable to understand for a moment that they were naturally that way. But his attention quickly left as long nails traced the thick stitching of Zehel's smile, the fine lines that pulled together black and white fabric. Then he grasped the doll and hid it to his chest.

From his position on the bed, Teito took in as much of the room as he could. As far as he could see, there was barely any furniture in the room, the only thing that signaled it belonged to someone would have to be the painted stars on the ceiling.

A small high window allowed sunlight and clean air into the room. Just the bed Teito was in and a desk were visible. It looked like the room he shared with Hakuren when they were still studying for their Bishop's Exam, only smaller.

That seemed like ages ago, the Bishop's Exams. Teito had been so determined to go to the land of Seele and regain his lost memories, but so much drama had gotten in the way of it all. He wondered if Hakuren had gotten his Bishop's Pass. He had never even bothered asking, when he was brought back to the Seventh District after his last excursion, if Hakuren ever passed.

Probably not, since a partner was required and Teito had failed to even _remember _about Seele. He had been too worried, too distraught, and if Hakuren had never mentioned anything, he supposed his blond friend understood that Teito was in no position to be testing for anything.

But it was still selfish of him to assume that the world would bend to his needs. It certainly didn't seem that way. He had left to keep Frau safe, only to find out the stupid idiot had charged into the First District anyway. But he had never heard talk that Frau was actually _looking _for him; he knew Hyuuga and that pink-haired child, Kuroyuri, would have been more than pleased to taunt Teito with such delicate information.

Did Frau even _look _for him after that attack on the First District? Or was Frau even looking for him at all? He more than understood if the man didn't want to bother with him anymore; Teito had promised to remain with him and broken it without sparing a glance behind him when he left Frau at the hospital.

He couldn't have done so otherwise. Even a glance at Frau's resting form would have rendered Teito incapable of fleeing (because that was what it was – not concern for Frau's well-being). And now look at the mess he had made. All because he was afraid of what might happen to the last person in this world he cared with all his heart. His young, childish, trusting heart. If he had stayed in that hotel room – stayed in the comfort of Frau's protective arms, none of this would have happened.

They would have arrived back to the Seventh District, Hakuren and Teito would have gotten their Bishop's Passes, and Teito would have gone to Seele to recover his memories and finally understand who he was, and why he was the person he was.

But no.

He had fled when Frau had yelled, too dejected and distraught to think properly, wanting nothing more than to escape. But with that damn collar on his neck, how could he? So he looked up the only person who knew how to remove it.

The same person that wanted him dead.

Teito knew that was the stupidest thing he could have done. But he had lost Mikage, and he couldn't handle Frau with his usual snappish, snarling self. He had felt genuine hurt of what Frau had told him (he couldn't even remember what they had fought about in the first place), but it had been enough to push him over the edge of sanity. Any other day, he would have called Frau a _douche bag_, kicked him in the chin, and stormed off to sulk in a corner or something.

But he screwed up, as usual.

"Does God hate me, Zehel?" Teito whispered, nuzzling his doll and smelled the faint smell of…smoke? He frowned and sniffed again. Yep, smoke. Earthy, like charred wood, and a bit like Frau's cigarettes.

The smell, regardless of the way it grated his nostrils, was strangely soothing, and made a pain in Teito's chest flare to something unbearable that he found himself struggling with a swollen throat and irritated eyes.

Teito wanted Frau, wanted everything Frau had to offer him. It was a frightening need bubbling in the pit of his stomach, and his resolve to quell and ignore this need was fading into nothing.

He had learned this painful thought during his time away. Teito didn't understand it, but wanted to trust in it. Frau was something secure – freedom with a safety line, in case things went wrong.

And the more he drunk in the offensive smell of burned tobacco and wood, the more Teito longed for Frau. And not in such an innocent way either. He blushed as his thoughts strayed, head turning so he could hide his face in a feather-stuffed pillow.

With a shuddering sigh, Teito relaxed his tense muscles; he was relieved it only left him mildly sore, instead of throbbing in pain. But remaining in bed now was impossible.

Even dozing back to sleep, especially with the bright sunlight streaming in through the window.

So, with nothing better to do with his time, Teito slipped out of bed and out of the room with the finesse of a limping cat, mindful of his sore knees and twitching leg muscles.

Dressed in a simple pajama set, Teito was careful to inspect the hallway, listen for any approaching footsteps, before venturing further out. The hallways appeared familiar enough, though without a proper landmark, Teito was just wandering about like a blind man.

But as he pressed forward, artificial light became natural, and soon the smell of clean air filtered through his nose again.

At a bend, Teito emerged into the vast courtyard of the Seventh District. He was struck shocked as his emerald eyes passed over the roaming hills of debris and building materials, the half-erected cathedral, and the buildings with men standing on scaffolding boards to patch what seemed like random openings on building walls.

It left Teito wondering why _now _the church decided the District required such an extensive renovation.

With too many questions, and with no one around to answer them, Teito felt a twinge of impatience and set out in search of a familiar face. But once he had a step out into the courtyard, he retracted. If he were found, Frau would find out.

And, at the moment, Teito did not want to meet with the bishop just yet.

His sudden realization that Frau, unlike him, would probably be less than pleased to see him, because of his actions, made Teito worried of their reunion. He took to the hallways, wandering about in vain hope that Hakuren would miraculously appear.

Hakuren he could deal with.

As his wanderings trickled away the minutes, Teito noticed the appearance of new and old hallways, archways, floors, and walls.

There was no uniform pattern for the restoration, and he wondered again what exactly happened within the Seventh District during his absence.

Then a far off door, deep within a random hallway, guarded by four full-grown bishops, spiked Teito's deadly curiosity. He had nothing better to do to pass the time, and with the thought that maybe they were discussing the construction currently taking place in the courtyard, Teito looked for a way inside.

He observed his surroundings, hidden out of sight, before circling into another hallway, looking for any hidden entrances leading to the room. Then he noticed small ventilation shafts spread at an equal distance from each other down the length of the hall.

With a quick glance around, Teito ran towards the wall. His ankles throbbed in pain, his legs painfully sore, but he managed to place a well-angled foot on the wall and push upward.

Thin fingers slipped, a bit forcefully, into the ventilation grill, and for a moment was left dangling there, plotting his next move, when he tugged at the metal. It slid out without much battle, leaving Teito flailing for a moment before he latched onto the inside of the ventilation system. He slid the object inside before splaying both hands on cold metal, faintly squeaking as Teito struggled to pull his sore body inside.

He somehow managed the task, and crawled his way deeper inside.

Teito attempted at stealth, and moved forward with the strength of his forearms alone. The metal around him groaned from time to time at his weight, but as the faint mumble of human voices echoed across the vents, Teito advanced forward with much more care.

He caught snippets of conversation, not understanding what they were discussing. Then he immediately froze, eyes glued to the faint artificial light glaring through a shaft from the room's wall a few feet away.

"Look, we simply cannot just –"

"Archbishop Frau, I do believe it is _rude_ to interrupt when someone else is speaking."

That was Frau, arguing with a voice Teito didn't recognize. He knew his blond's baritone voice anywhere. The other, not so much. It was light, deliberate, with a hint of smugness. It was nowhere near like the cockiness of Frau's tone; where his was playful, this unknown man's was spiteful.

"And I believe it is _rude_ –," Frau shot back, his tone falling an octave to that growl that always caused his chest to rumble with a powerful force.

"How dare you talk back to the Pope_!_" This was another new voice, high as well, childish and grating. "Must I remind you that he has years of experience with this sort of thing while you _stole _the title but a week ago?"

"First, I didn't _steal _anything." Frau sounded outraged.

'_Wait, Archbishop?Frau?'_

"And second," Teito pushed his thoughts aside, and put his attention back on the conversation. "It's been more than a fucking week! And lastly, I've dealt with more bullshit than your _oh so precious _Pope there has probably seen in his lifetime!"

Teito advanced forward, careful to keep his feet from banging into the metal walls. He stopped advancing once he caught Frau's figure, standing at the head of a table, through the slits of the vent. At his right was Castor, leaning towards him though Teito could not see the man's expression. And to Frau's left was Labrador, though because the man was giving his back to Teito, he could only identify the bishop because of his unmistakable lilac hair.

Castor whispered something to Frau, which made the man immediately scowl.

"I will _not _calm down! This asshole can't just waltz into my District and act like he fucking runs the place!"

"Did you just call the Pope an-an _asshole_?"

"I did. What of it?"

"Please excuse the Archbishop," Castor rose from his seat and placed a hand on Frau's shoulder, which was immediately shrugged off much to Teito's amusement. "He has other matters on his mind."

"What could be more important than the Pope's presence?" there was that arrogant, holier-than-thou voice again. Teito had half a mind to see who it was to kick their ass later.

"He's about five foot two, shaggy brown hair, big green eyes, and an attitude ten times better than yours, _assface_!"

Teito unwillingly blushed.

"Perhaps we are due for a recess," Labrador added helpfully, and from his vantage point, Teito watched as the people within his line of sight relaxed at the idea.

"No, we will continue this until it is finished. And so far, you are not doing too well, _Archbishop_," the same grating voice spat it like a curse.

Teito watched as Frau resisted Castor, who was directing him back into his chair. They whispered back and forth for a moment, before directing their attention back to the meeting.

Teito listened on for a moment but again understood nothing of it. They spoke of relations between districts and he could only assume it had something to do with the attack the Seventh had directed toward the First. He wondered about that as well, and decided it was about time to start asking for answers.

As careful as he was getting into the vents, he slipped out, slid down the wall, and hazardously placed the metal frame on his way down. He tiptoed down the hall and rounded a random intersection when he unconsciously called out Hakuren's name at the sight of a longhaired blond. The young man stopped, turned, and immediately raced toward Teito.

Teito was thrown back, Hakuren landing on top of him. The brunet hissed in pain as it shot like a spread of thorny vines throughout his body, and with a string of apologies and curses, the blond helped Teito up.

The injured teen rested against the nearby wall, calculating his new bruises and calming his breathing.

"I am so _sorry_, Teito." Hakuren gushed, battling with happiness and concern for his friend. "I completely forgot you're injured. I just saw you up and about, and I –."

Emerald eyes chanced a look up to see violet eyes brimmed with tears. He panicked; hands raised and face expressing his shock, Teito stuttered to reply. "H-Hakuren! W-why are you –?"

"Why do you think, idiot?" the blond turned his back to the other, attempting to compose himself.

Teito swallowed a pain in his throat, wondering how many times he was going to go through this emotional rollercoaster in a single day. "How long was I unconscious?"

"Three days," the blond sighed and turned back to the brunet. A smirk pulled his lips as he extended a hand in greeting. Startled for a moment, the brunet observed the pale hand presented to him, but easily shook it. The taller teen's grip was firm, almost to the point of injuring his bruised hand, but Hakuren relented after a moment and looked down to his feet. Embarrassed or ashamed, Teito wasn't sure.

"I have so many questions I want to ask, but you must be tired," he looked up to smile at Teito. "You should go back to your room."

"I have questions too," at that moment his stomach growled. "And I'm hungry, apparently."

"Can you walk? We can go to the dinning hall and see if they have any leftover lunch?"

"Yeah, that sounds good." Teito nodded, and blindly followed Hakuren as the boy led the way, smiling when he knew the blond wasn't looking. He didn't realize how much he missed that mocking grin, his flamboyant tone, everything. He even noticed that Hakuren's hair had gotten longer, wavy at the ends with bangs coming close to obscuring his eyes.

Didn't the boy think about his appearance anymore?

_.o7Ghost.o7Ghost.o7Ghost._

Over a small lunch, Hakuren explained the past events to Teito, noticing the unaltered shock in his emerald eyes as the brunet ate a flower-stalk soup with a cheese sandwich. Teito said nothing but to seek validation of Frau's rise in position. Then it was Hakuren's turn to question.

"Where did Archbishop-sama find you? He wasn't very specific when he practically drove his hawkzile into the courtyard. Just mentioned something about a bell of some sorts."

"He, um," Teito pressed the end of his spoon to his temple. "I'm not entirely sure."

Hakuren raised an eyebrow in question.

"I don't remember."

"You weren't conscious?"

"I don't think I was. I'm pretty sure I wasn't."

Hakuren observed Teito for a moment, noticing the boy's quiet distress. Though he did not wish to do so, he abstained from questioning Teito's reasons for his disappearance and what exactly occurred where he was held captive. So that pretty much left him with no answered questions, but he knew Teito would talk, once he was comfortable enough to share such a traumatic event.

"So how are you feeling?"

Teito opened his mouth to reply but Hakuren was quick to add "and don't say _fine_. Labrador needs specifics; even if it's something small, like a bruise, tell me."

The brunet sighed and stirred his soup.

"My knees hurt," he ruefully admitted, eyes kept on the swirl of light-green liquid but quickly looked up at the shaky breath Hakuren released. "What's wrong?"

"Y-you're knees… Th-the bones –," his voice hitched, an unwanted sob clawed its way up Hakuren's throat.

"Y-you saw?" Teito's tone was filled with alarm, fear. He wasn't certain of how he may have looked like to other people, because Mikhail had tucked his consciousness away until he woke within the security of the Seventh District, but Teito just knew his injuries were extensive and disfiguring. He experienced most of them when they had been dealt; he had at least seen the way they broke his fingers and toes. Teito had not wanted his friend to see him in such a condition, and much less cry for him.

"I was the only one around to assist Bishop Labrador," he admitted, violet eyes watching Teito from underneath overgrown bangs. "You were fighting, screaming. Archbishop Frau was beside himself with rage. He…" Hakuren pulled in a shaky breath, nervously playing with his fingers and finding them far more interesting to look at than Teito's startled features.

"He was too quick for us to stop him," the blond whispered down into his hand, not noticing the food Teito had long ago abandoned. "He snapped Labrador's wrist because he was _hurting _you. He snapped it like…like a dried up twig. And I was almost certain he would snap Labrador's neck too. His hand was squeezing so _hard_. Castor-san had to bash the side of his head with a wooden stool. There was blood everywhere; you were screaming, I could tell you were, but _you didn't make a sound_. And even with his injured hand, Labrador pushed through his pain to heal you."

Hakuren drew in a deep breath, steadying himself. "So with Castor begging Frau to calm down, restraining him by using his body and hoping the man wouldn't _kill_ him, and with Labrador injured, sweating from pain and exertion – seeing you as you were has quite certainly –," he released a bit of hysterical laughter, but sighed to calm it away. He didn't bother continue where he left off, just began once more, having collected his thoughts again.

"Almost every bone in your body was fractured or broken. You were spotted with bruises. Massive internal bleeding and so much brain damage… I was _relieved_," he stole Teito's hands, ignoring the spoon sandwiched in the middle of their hands, "that you even remembered my _name_."

"Hakuren…"

"Don't you _ever _do that to me again." He squeezed Teito's hands, brought them to his forehead. "Don't you _ever_ _scare _me like that, Teito, for heaven's sake. _Shit._"

"I'm sorry," the brunet whispered, his chest constricting in pain.

"You better be sorry," Hakuren snapped lightly, finally releasing Teito's hands. Still hunched, he took to scrape at the wooden table with a fingernail; an irritable frown pulled down his lips. "Now hurry up and finish your food. It's been too long since your last meal, I'm sure."

"Yes, sir."

And from the corner of his eyes, Hakuren watched Teito slowly eat his food, fighting the happiness that threatened to overflow his violet eyes.

_.o7Ghost.o7Ghost.o7Ghost._

Hakuren was playing with Teito's stuffed Zehel and a small toy soldier he had found outside in the gardens when a knock came to the door. The blond stole a glance towards Teito, who was entranced in a book, and decided to answer the door himself. He assumed it would be a sister, having come to inquire on the brunet's health, but was more than startled to find his Archbishop standing in the doorway.

The man raised an eyebrow, smirked, and gave the teen a casual salute.

"'sup, kid. How ya fairing?"

"Better, I suppose. And the Pope?"

"Um, about that," Frau rubbed the back of his head, a sheepish smile tugging his lips. "I kinda volunteered you to chaperone him around the District tomorrow."

Hakuren looked horror-stricken, but before he could protest, the taller blond raised a hand for silence. "I know, I suck. I'll make it up to you, I swear. I would've done it myself, but the Pope and I aren't exactly…buddies at the moment."

"Yeah, you definitely owe me," he mumbled in retaliation as he shoved the toy Zehel onto Frau's chest and exited the room with a backwards wave and a quick 'Bye' to Teito.

Frau watched the teen disappear down the hall before directing his attention to the toy in his hand. Gloved fingers followed the trail of stitches composing the doll, weighing the object in hand. It felt a bit heavier than he remembered.

"Teito," Frau muttered to the toy in his hands, "We need to talk."

"I forgot" the brunet rushed to his feet, tripping over the legs of his chair in his haste to stand "I have something to do."

"Stop."

A hand slammed on the doorframe, arm extended to signal that passing through was not allowed. Frau knew that could hardly stop Teito if the boy really wanted to leave; he was still small enough to pass under his outstretched arm, but something was keeping the brunet inside. Whether shock, or curiosity to what Frau might say, the blond wasn't sure but too much time left in silence and he knew the boy would start getting edgy. He presented the plush back to its owner, fighting a smile when it was taken with gentle hands.

Teito gingerly picked lint off the toy, distracting himself from the horrible throbbing in his chest and throat.

Frau was overwhelmed with so much happiness that it scared him. Labrador had told him to prepare with the possibility that Teito could have suffered from extensive brain damage, and amnesia as a result, but he was glad Labrador had been wrong. Oh so very glad. But his happiness was dampened by the boy's need for a hasty retreat. It was as if that happiness, the unadulterated joy to find Teito well enough to be up, was stabbed with a rusty knife.

And his unwanted insecurities resurfaced. Clawing their way up to the surface and whispering harsh words into his ears.

"Why do you keep running away from me?" He asked before he could stop himself, but it was something he wanted to know. Something he _needed _to know. And though he felt shame at having asked, he felt no regret.

"I'm not –!" Teito immediately stuttered, taking a step back as if unexpectedly struck. He pressed Zehel to his chest, still dressed in his pajama flannels, appropriate apparel for the darkening world outside. "You can't –, th-that's not fair. You're not allowed to say that."

Frau's patience snapped that very instance. His insecurity and rage boiled and surfaced, and over took his sanity, crushing it into near oblivion. But instead of unrestrained anger, it was something controlled, contained, _freezing cold_.

"Not allowed?" he steadily spoke, pronouncing each syllable carefully.

Teito stared at his feet as he shuffled backwards, watching Frau's booted feet follow close behind. And the click of a locked door startled him into looking up, catching sight of Frau's sapphire eyes looking down at him. "You can't ask me something like that while looking like that!" he shouted, and managed to startle himself by doing so. His face flushed red, his body trembled. Teito backed up until he bumped into the desk with a squeak.

"Looking like what?" Frau loomed over Teito, certain it was fear flickering in Teito's eyes, along with defiance. Which made sense since Teito replied rather defensively, snappish.

"Like if you're hurt! Like if I've done something wrong!"

"Because you haven't?" Frau continued to attempt at calm and collected, but he felt the twitch in his frown, and was certain his frown showed more than what he wanted.

"Of course not!" Teito immediately protested, eyes darting back to his bare feet and noticed his toy beside his swollen ankle. When had he dropped it? And he really needed to get off his feet; the throbbing in his ankles couldn't mean anything good. He had been feeling it earlier, a strange numbing pain shoot up and down his legs, but he hadn't realized it was his ankles _swelling_.

"I see," Frau nodded leisurely, taking his time to process what he was hearing before turning a foot at an angle, and then a moment later, turning the rest of the way to leave the way he came in. "I should go."

"What? No!" Teito looked to Frau's receding back. "You can't just leave!"

Frau was at the door by the time Teito spoke, hand on the knob, but he wrenched it away and pounded a fist to the wooden door. "And you can leave whenever the hell you want to?" His anger had won, boiled and overflowed. He couldn't chill it and keep it under control anymore than he could keep himself from lashing out at the teen.

He had wanted to keep calm, to take everything in stride. He wanted to be in _control _of the situation, but whenever it concerned Teito Klein, he was far from being able to accomplish such a task. Frau felt his anger was justified, and he no longer tried to ease Teito of the burden he had created.

Because Frau wasn't a monster that lashed out at everyone. That growled and hissed and _spat _at his friends. He had a right to be angry. Furious, even. He should have moved on with his life, as he had attempted to do before, but things were never as simple as that. The feelings he had been trying to eradicate had come back, full force, and Frau knew he was in too deep now to turn back.

But that certainly didn't mean he had to take the brunet's _bullshit _laying down like an obedient, masochistic dog.

"But of course, you can!" he continued with a false grinning flair, sadistically satisfied when the boy cringed away from his icy glare, "Teito Klein can do whatever the hell pleases him, no matter of the _trauma _it causes everyone else!"

"Trauma?" Teito looked utterly confused, "I didn't –."

"You didn't plan on it? You didn't mean to?" it was asked with complete sarcasm that caused Teito to raise his chin in defiance again. "Well _la-di-da_," Frau sing-songed, untroubled by the resistance the teen was attempting,"you've succeeded regardless."

"Who did I traumatize –?" Teito near shouted, hands clenching the desk behind him for support as Frau stalked towards him like a livid lion. His glacier eyes had darkened – sharpened into a glare Teito had never seen before. It cut straight through him and made him deadly afraid.

'_This man can kill me' _he finally seemed to realize, but certainly didn't expect what came out of the blond's mouth next when gloved hands slammed into the desk on either side, sending the stack of books he had been reading down to the ground.

"Me! I'm not some pup you can abandon on the side of the road, you selfish little _sonnavabitch_!" he shouted, roared. Frau knew his height always intimidated the teen, knew his anger frightened the boy to no end. And yet he had used it against Teito and all because he was angry.

Angry at the teen.

At the situation.

At everything.

But mostly, Frau was angry with himself. At his inability to control even the smallest aspects of his life. At being so easily manipulated that it made him feel weak, helpless. He wanted his strength back, his power.

And he realized too late that there were other ways of getting that back.

Not by belittling a boy who, obviously, was as lost as he was.

Frau watched defiance contort with pain, and suffering, and unclouded trepidation. "…I-I didn't mean that –," he hurriedly tried to soothe, his voice soft and expressing remorse.

But Teito didn't respond to it. He lifted his fists to wipe away the tears in is eyes; he swallowed hard to keep his throat from closing.

And he fought to control the storm brewing inside his heart.

"Of course you did," he replied with a calmness he was rather proud of, expecting that his voice would betray him. "Everything you say when you're angry is what you really feel; it's why I usually listen to you when you yell at me. I-I'm s-s-s –," his voice finally gave way. He was wondering when that would happen.

"Teito, don't cry –," Frau nearly begged, and was relieved when the teen quickly snapped that he wasn't.

Unable to restrain himself, Frau crushed Teito to his chest, wrapping an arm around the boy's small waist, and running a hand through his disheveled brown hair. He tightened his fist into that hair, nuzzled it as he breathed in the smell of dirt and oil.

"Fuck, I've missed you so damn much."

At that, small hands clutched to Frau's coat, trembling with the force of their grip. The blond heard Teito choke back a sob, and he did his best to comfort by stroking the boy's hair instead of pulling it, by loosening his grip around Teito's waist. The teen sighed away a cry as he nuzzled into the blond's chest.

"Kid," Frau chuckled after a moment, "you really need a bath. You smell."

"You stupid –," he was caught by a sob again, and went to beating Frau's chest with his fists.

After a few trickling moments later, Teito's half-hearted attempt to injure Frau died, and he sagged against the stronger built of the man before him. He was easily lifted up into waiting arms, cradled so gently he nearly started crying again but managed to restrain himself, and didn't even bother asking where they were going when Frau led them out of the room.

As they walked darkened hallways, lit by candlelight and the half-crescent moon's glow, Frau admitted his fear though no one had asked him to.

Teito was a bit glad he did, because now he understood why the blond had been so violent. Why he seemed so guarded, even when they were alone together. Teito placed an ear to Frau's chest, listening to the sound of nothing but the blond's calm breathing.

"_I'm afraid that every time you leave…you won't ever come back. What am I suppose to do then, without you?"_

_.o7Ghost.o7Ghost.o7Ghost._

Frau rested his head against the moist stone railing, body splayed across the two small steps to the private tub in Jio's quarters. Drowsy sapphire eyes watched Teito splash around in the water, lightly flinching at the droplets that hit his face. Every so often, his hand twitched, and the blond soon found himself trailing pale fingers through the short hairs at the teen's nape.

"Frau, what are you doing?" Teito questioned, momentarily distressed by the strange shiver running rampant up and down his spine.

"Hn?" Fingers froze before Frau pulled them away and dropped his hand to his side. "'m tired, is all. You almost done?"

The moment they had reached the rooms reserved for the Archbishop, Frau had dumped Teito into the tub of warm water. The boy _really _needed a bath; he smelled worse than dried road kill. And he couldn't help but want to touch warm skin.

So after much debate, Frau had removed his gloves, calmed his nerves, and assisted Teito with washing his hair. That _probably _wasn't the best idea he had all day, considering the faint sounds of approval coming from Teito went straight to his groin.

Really now? He was being turned on from giving Teito a _bath_? Was he so deprived?

Of course, he was. It was stupid to ask.

But Frau, being the gentleman that he was, pushed his needs aside and completed his task. Relieved too, that both marks on his hand did not react to Teito's bare skin.

"Just go to bed," the teen sighed at Frau's question, "I'll be there in a minute."

When no reply came, Teito called out to the man behind him. He received a "_hrn?_" for his efforts.

With a quick glance over his shoulder, he found the blond with his eyes closed and a light snore escaping his partially open mouth. Teito rolled his eyes before quickly finishing his bath, wincing at every other step as he raced into the Archbishop's room to scavenge for a towel Frau failed to bring him.

After opening and closing several drawers, the brunet had a towel around his waist when he came across a drawer filled with clothing that definitely did not belong to the blond currently unconscious in the bathroom. He lightly lifted the layers, finding all assortments of clothing – from sweaters and shirts to jeans and slacks, Teito even found a few sweater vests he would never wear, regardless if a threat to his life hung in the balance.

Searching the drawer below it, Teito found more clothing around his size in all kinds of colors and fashions. An unwanted blush rushed to his cheeks as trembling hands clutched to a pair of dark olive boxer shorts.

He wasn't dense enough to not understand what it meant to have so much clothing in another person's room, Mikage had made it his priority to teach Teito the finer points of developing romance with all the damn shoujo manga he made the brunet read.

And this, all the clothing packed into those two large drawers (and Teito certainly didn't know if there was more), definitely meant that Frau wanted their relationship to continue forward, regardless of the things Teito had done.

Or, at least the brunet assumed it had been Frau who bought so much clothing. There were only three other people within the blond's immediate circle of friends that knew about their relationship. In fact, he was certain that Frau only had two friends – he didn't count Hakuren because he was more certain than not that his blond friend had been trying to steal his boyfriend while he was gone.

A figurative tiny little pipe inside Teito's head just burst at the sudden realization. To distract himself, he imagined distressed little workers running around, shouting at each other to assess the damage and figure out a solution, while the scene faded in and out with flashing red lights and the wailing of bells in the background.

Oh, one of the little workers just spontaneously combusted. That was strange.

But back to the real world.

Teito slapped his forehead, attempting to control the flow of blood to his face with will alone. It wasn't working too well.

Of course, they were "together"; Teito understood that much of their relationship. Unless he misunderstood Frau, but that just didn't seem possible. The man had indirectly admitted to it: he had been devastated when Teito had abandoned him. Certainly, a man such as Frau would never admit to something like that without actually meaning it. Even then, a man such as Frau would never admit to feeling anything at all.

Teito, single-handedly, had broken Archbishop Frau, perverted womanizer, and turned him into a giant slop of emotional stew.

"_At least now the pervert knows how ridiculous it feels to be rendered like that,"_ the teen thought bitterly as he shoved the drawer closed.

But the petty thought didn't make him at all happy, or relieved. His hands were still shaking, his heart was racing, and above all, he had the sudden urge to pack a bag and run away. If Mikage had been around, he would've given Teito an answer to his anxiety.

Firmly shaking his head to banish the depressing thought, Teito quickly dressed into his boxers and into one of Frau's shirts that he found during his raid of the man's closet, and went to rubbing his hair dry with his towel as he trekked back to the bathroom.

It would do him no good to cry over his lost friend. It certainly wouldn't bring him back, and wherever he was guarding Teito from now, he wouldn't be too happy knowing he was the cause for Teito's pain.

With that resolve in mind, the brunet prodded Frau's bulky shoulder with a finger, knowing that with every passing second his resolve was crumbling and he needed a goddamn hug.

Not that he would ever ask for one.

Directly.

"Frau. Frau get up; you can't fall asleep here," Teito called softly as he continued to poke the bishop. The man stirred, mumbled something the brunet didn't quite catch, and went back to sleep. With a frown, Teito continued to prod until he poked a spot just below the ribs and above the hipbone that caused the blond to violently jerk and scramble a few inches away before he finally opened his eyes to take in his surroundings.

"…are you ticklish, Frau?" the teen asked with a hint of amusement stroking his tone.

"What? No! Freaking startled me, is all," he grumbled in defense, working his speech around a yawn as he continued, "Thought you were some, _hrm_, psycho trying to kill me." he rubbed his eye, "Almost snapped your neck there, so don't do it again."

"I won't." Teito took Frau's hand and tugged him forward, eyes lingering on Zehel's symbol burned onto the back of the blond's hand.

Frau caught him staring as he obediently rose to stand, snatching his gloves in the process. Though he would never admit to feeling reluctant at releasing Teito's hand, the Archbishop felt a strange sense of loneliness when he slipped his gloves back on to create a barrier between the skin-on-skin contact.

Even more so when the brunet did not take his hand again.

"Are you wearing my shirt?" Frau inquired in order to change the subject, though he knew the answer to it already. The dark material _drenched _Teito's small form, the sleeves barely hanging onto slim shoulders and coming so far below the hips that it almost hid the shorts the brunet wore beneath it. Frau was having a _very _difficult time reminding himself that the teen before him was, in fact, a _minor _and he could go to _jail_, his choice of activity involving said minor consensual or not.

But he was briefly rewarded with a blushing, frowning teen, so it made the waiting bearable.

"It _is_, isn't it?" he continued to tease, even when Teito threw the wet towel to his face. "It looks good on you," he smirked once said towel was removed and discarded.

"Fuck you!"

"What? I just paid you a _compliment_,and I get an _eff_ bomb for my efforts?" Frau watched the teen storm towards the dresser stocked with clean towels, and dry his hair furiously with one of them. "Remind me not to get you anything for Valentine's Day, snarky little runt."

Teito looked up from the mistreatment of his head to stare blankly at the man approaching him. Gloved hands swatted away his own as they set to do the work of drying his hair, only gently and not so hurried.

Of course, he was blushing as he stared down at his bare feet, clenching and unclenching his toes as he mulled over a thought in his head. After a while of just listening to Frau hum, the teen spoke. "You were going to get me something for Valentine's Day?"

"…well, originally I wasn't," Frau admitted, thankful for the towel keeping Teito's eyesight down. He wouldn't know how to explain the panic he knew were clearly show in his eyes. "It's not a holiday I celebrate often, or for the right reasons. But, um, it feels like I have to now."

"…do I have to get you something too?"

"Traditionally speaking, yes, but you don't have to."

Teito raised an eyebrow. "Traditionally?"

"Traditionally, the girl gives the guy chocolate on Valentine's, and the guy returns the favor on White Day."

In one swift movement, Teito yanked the towel from his head, and with his other took a fist-full of Frau's shirt into his hand. "What the hell are you implying, pervert?"

"Oh come on, really?" the blond smirked as he gestured to himself with both hands.

Teito's frown deepened.

"Fine," he rolled his eyes, "I'll be the girl if it gets you so bend out of shape."

Teito sputtered for a moment before he replaced the towel on his head, attempting to hide the unhealthy blush crowding his face.

With a small smile tugging his lips, Frau placed his hands on the teen's cheeks, gently coaxing the brunet to lift his head but failing. "Unless you _want _to be the girl. I have, absolutely, no objections with that. And I will definitely make it worth your while. After all, the only job the girl has is stand there and look pretty while the guy does…this," a peck on the towel on Teito's head. "And this," another on his forehead after nuzzling the towel out of the way. "And a little more of this," another on his cheek as Frau finally coaxed to get the boy to lift his face up. He continued with his light kisses, until he managed to get the teen to open his painfully closed eyes with a kiss to the temple.

"Still mad?"

Teito glared at the floor but shook his head.

"I know you're not a girl, Teito. I just helped you take a bath, remember?"

"You're sleeping alone tonight, asshole!"

Towel thrown to his face again, Frau removed it just in time to watch the teen stalk towards the door. Grinning, he jogged the short distance to the teen and finally had an excuse to wrap his arms around him. "Don't go! I'll get lonely!"

"Deal with it, pervert!"

"Come'on! I was just teasing; don't get so grumpy about everything."

"Don't care! Let me go!"

The arms encircling Teito slowly began constricting to the point where pain became known, and the teen winced as he was pressed almost uncomfortably against the blond's chest. Too quickly that it frightened Teito into releasing a startled cry, he was swept off his feet, and carried toward the bed.

Before he could question, the teen was dropped onto it, and opened startled green eyes to find a menacing Frau towering before him. Teito moved to sit up, anything to give him some height so Frau's wouldn't be so intimidating, when the man placed a hand on his chest and shoved him back onto the mattress.

"Frau?" It came out as barely a whisper, something like the timid _meuw _of a lost kitten.

"…I'm not," Frau cleared his throat, tone coming out husky and dry. "I'm not letting you go; not anymore."

"No, I won't... –"

"You had promised me, a long time ago, that you would never leave –"

"Technically, I never promised –."

"Well promise it now or get the fuck out of my sight this instant!"

Teito swallowed the protest he had ready, trembling in fear at the menacing form hovering above him. Frau's eyes were too dark to be recognizable, flooding with too much pain and anger that it continued to startle the teen at how easily the blond was allowing himself to succumb to his random spouts of emotion. Frau was always the calm one, the clear-headed one. To see him so distraught, in pain, the teen couldn't help but feel a slight panic rush through his veins.

But now he saw the damage he had done, the insecurities he placed on a man that never had a care in the world. And he reached up with trembling hands to cup cold cheeks, sadly smiling as icy tears ran down his thumbs, spilled over the back of his hands and down the length of his arm until they melted into his warm skin.

"What have you done to me?" Frau whispered, eyes searching for answers on the planes of Teito's features.

The teen merely shook his head, smile disappearing as he responded. "I don't know."

Frau sighed deeply as fatigue snared and encased him in an uncomfortable cocoon. He nuzzled into Teito's warm palm for a moment before he pulled away and went about the room performing various tasks. He picked up and properly discarded the towels into a hamper hidden in a wardrobe, he pulled out a blanket and threw it in Teito's general direction, and finally trekked the length of the room to a small table by the entrance to his room. He pulled a silver salver from within its drawers and a small metal box.

Within the box, Frau produced a strange five-petal flower, black in color with vibrant green leaves and vines pooling around it. The flower gave an odd mist once it was set on the salver, and continued to fume as he walked it back towards his bed.

"Is that to help you sleep?" Teito whispered as he watched the blond place the plate at the foot of the bed.

Frau said nothing; instead, he pulled away sheets, tucked Teito into bed, snapped the lights off, and dropped onto the bed exhausted, still fully clothed. He was nearly lost to sleep when a blanket was hesitantly draped across his torso.

Sapphire eyes watched Teito while the boy meekly withdrew, wrapping sheets and blanket around him, back facing Frau. The blond chuckled lightly, shifting about as he knocked off his boots and pulled the teen toward him, keeping the boy swaddled and warm against the cold.

"It's to make sure I stay asleep," Frau muttered into brown locks, indulging in the heat radiating off the teen in his arms. It was a comfort warmer than an absurd amount of thick blankets could offer him; it certainly made him feel lighter, content. And though there was a painful itch at the pit of his stomach, an animalistic urge to devour the small boy before him in both body and soul, he found the will to suppress both animals inside him, and just…

"I love you, Teito."

The boy blushed, deep and red, as the arms encircling him tightened their hold. He wasn't sure whether it was Frau trembling or his own body, or both, but he was shaken, and it terrified him how much three simple words had an influence on his self. He inhaled deeply, exhaled slowly. He attempted to quell his anxiety, to reassure himself he was in no danger.

But that type of talk was lost to the fear, dark and black and _thick_, filling his chest, pushing its way into every crack and corner of his shattered valor and strength. His eyes burned and watered, blurring his vision, while his throat closed in on itself and made breathing difficult.

Sweaty palms latched onto bare, cold skin, fighting their way through the confinement of blankets. His breathing was erratic, forced. He fought to control unwanted sobs, fought to keep control of everything. But the fear, the uncertainty and pain, made control impossible. Completely impossible.

"Teito?"

Frau's worried tone cracked Teito.

The teen screamed, wailed – tears, unrestrained, flowed freely. He threw his head back, eyes screwed shut as he attempted to remove the vice-like hold keeping him place. Unsuccessful as it was, even as he dragged nails across skin, leaving angry red marks in their wake. He could hear his name being spoken, hear it over his own hysteria – but he didn't understand it, didn't _want _to understand. He wanted to scream, and cry. He wanted to run away, hide where they could never find him, never think of looking for him. He wanted solitude.

Teito didn't want to care, didn't want to _love_.

Such things never lead to anything worthwhile.

They lead to pain, doubt, fear and insecurity, the feeling of abandonment. He didn't know how to deal with such things, no one ever bothered teaching him. It hurt him worse because he always ended up caring too much. Like a child, he would give all his trust – incomplete as it was, Teito would give his entire heart to the person he loved. And as such, they held him in the palm of their hands, balanced his world on the tip of a needle.

Teito could not handle his world shattering again.

"Teito – Teito, look at me," gloved hands pulled tear-stained cheeks upwards, forcing Teito's face out of the comforts of the small crevice he had created with his knees and arms once Frau released him just an inch.

The teen refused to open his eyes, instead went to biting his lip to keep the screams scratching his throat from surfacing. His shoulders shook from the effort of controlling his wild emotions, fingers digging into the fabric of the mattress.

"Teito… Teito, please," Frau pressed his forehead onto the brunet's, feeling the dampness of his chocolate hair and watching tears roll down the curves of his cheeks. He grimaced, frowned – Frau grinded his teeth as he screwed his eyes shut. "I don't know what to do when you cry," he admitted in a whisper.

"Y-you can't," the teen shook his head, forcefully stealing a breath and shivered as it left his mouth with a shudder. He forced himself to swallow, to rearrange his muddled thoughts, to control his need to cry and plead to be left alone. "You can't l-l…" he couldn't even say the damn word.

"I can do anything I damn well please."

The words ghosted cold over Teito's lips, clenching at something inside his chest. And, at that moment, Teito decided to just stop…caring.

To stop caring about tomorrow, the following week. To stop caring about his uncertainties, and the qualities about himself that he loathed. To stop caring about not caring. To stop caring about the wrongness of loving someone.

Teito reached up with trembling hands, tangled nimble fingers into golden blond locks, and tugged the man down. He heard, or more like _felt_, a muffled response of surprise as he moved his lips, unskillfully, over cold unresponsive ones.

Dejected, the teen slipped his hands over Frau's broad shoulders, and began to push away when his face was pulled upwards in such a sharp movement he heard a bone snap in place somewhere along his neck. But soon Teito found himself not caring as hungry lips met his own.

They crushed his, devoured him. A dreadfully skillful tongue parted his hesitant lips, and he struggled to imitate the erratic dance it was performing with his own.

Teito pulled away too quickly, out of breath and body itching for more.

Frau, on the other hand, took the initiative to continue. He placed kisses along sun-kissed skin, down the rounded edges of Teito's jaw, down the delicate curve of his neck and bit down at the soft flesh on his shoulder.

Teito gave a cry, confused by the pain and jolt of electricity that gripped him firmly and sent his entire body into disarray. Then Frau began to suck at the sore spot, and Teito unwillingly moaned into the cold air. He twitched beneath Frau, unable to remain still as pain and pleasure sung through his veins at the new sensations, all coming to pool at the pit of his stomach and further down.

Erratic and greedy, Teito's hands found their way under the hem of Frau's shirt, ghosting fingers over cold skin as he felt them clench underneath his touch. Above him, the blond gasped and encircled a hand around the brunet's small waist, lifting his lower half off the mattress to grind between Teito's legs.

The teen flinched, tensed, and abandoned his expedition of Frau's chest to wrap his arms around Frau's neck.

At the movement, Frau stilled, panting painfully quick. The body in his arms shivered, and he knew it was not from arousal. He had pushed too far too quickly.

With a sigh, Frau sat back on his heels, bringing Teito with him.

The boy saddled his lap, a bit reluctantly Frau noticed, but refused to ease his hold around his neck. Frau traced soothing circles along the teen's tensed back, kissing his temple every so often while murmuring that everything was all right.

"I'm not going to hurt you, Teito," he whispered as he placed another kiss to the throbbing vein in the brunet's temple.

"I-I know," he stammered into Frau's shoulder. "I'm j-just not –"

"You're not ready, I get it. And I'll wait until you are." Another kiss.

Hesitantly, Teito pulled back until he was face-to-face with the blond. He was relieved to see a small smile on the man's face, and attempted to return it with one of his own. "I'm sorry," he whispered shamefully, still burning red in the cheeks.

"It's okay," Frau laughed. "Well, sort of," he admitted with a slight tilt of his head. But he knocked his forehead playfully against Teito's in some sort of attempt to reassure the teen.

It seemed to work since the brunet's smile grew a millimeter wider.

"But please, Teito," he sighed, closed his eyes, and rested his head on a slim shoulder. "Don't ever feel that what I feel for you is wrong. God knows I've been trying to reassure myself of that fact for quite some time now, and it always comes to bite me in the face." Frau gave the teen a strong hug before lifting his head again to stare into impossibly gorgeous emerald eyes. "I won't be leaving your side any time soon."

"That's going to get annoying," Teito smirked, eyes kept on anywhere but Frau's.

"Oh? For me or for you?"

"For me, of course!" The brunet recognized the playful tone and welcomed it. "I'm the one that has to put up with you."

"My apologies then," Frau smirked. But it quickly vanished as he placed his forehead on Teito's, feeling how his body greedily stole the warmth off the teen. They couldn't stay together like this much longer.

"Teito…why are you planning to go back to the First District?"

Startled, Teito looked up, caught Frau's cold stare and immediately looked away. Only one thing ran through his mind: _"How did he know?"_

"Teito?"

When the teen failed to reply, Frau explained.

"Mikhail; he told me. He told me everything."

Teito tensed just a tiny bit more.

"Why do you need to go back for the rest of the Eye of Mikhail when you're safe _here_?" he seemed to plead, and knew he was an idiot for doing so.

"But it's not _safe _here, Frau," the teen whispered. "And I need to go to Seele."

"Dammit, Teito. So you need the Eye of Mikhail to go to Seele? I told you I would take you once you passed your Bishop's Exam. There's no need to have the stone if you want to go to Seele."

"I don't need it for that," he shook his head, his voice no higher than a whisper though he knew they were alone in the room. "I need it for…the thing I have inside of me."

"Teito?" Frau raised an eyebrow, confused. Mikhail had never mentioned that. "What do you mean?"

"So he didn't tell you everything," the teen laughed bitterly as he pulled a hand away from Frau to wipe a stray tear. "I'm the thing everyone's looking for." At Frau's confused expression, Teito continued. "I'm Pandora's Box. And without all of Mikhail's power at his disposal, the box will open and Verloren will awaken again."

_.o7Ghost.o7Ghost.o7Ghost._

"…_What_?"

"I know it's a lot to take in," Teito quickly added. "But it's true. I wouldn't be saying it if it wasn't."

"_Pandora's Box_?" Frau hissed, his arms wrapped around Teito's waist tightened just a bit. "When did Mikhail tell you this?"

"When he sensed the stone near, back in the First District. This was before they locked me away. He thought I could steal back the stone since I had been given _some _liberties on the military grounds."

"Teito, going now is a suicide mission. You know that," Frau pleaded.

"I know, but I need it."

"Goddamit," he hissed, head pressing against the curve of Teito's shoulder. "We'll figure out a way to get it back, but please, Teito, don't go looking for the damn Eye yourself."

"I don't want anyone getting hurt," the teen nearly whined.

"And I don't want you _getting killed_. And now, I have logic on my side. You _can't _go to the First District. Because if you _do_, _then _they'll have Pandora's Box as well, do you understand me?" Frau bit and chewed every word coming out of his mouth, more than prepared to scare it into Teito that he could not leave the District if he had to.

"But Frau –."

"No _buts_. We'll get the Eye back, get you to Seele, and the Pope never needs to know about this."

"…Frau, how much does the Pope know about me?"

Frau raised an eyebrow at the inquiry, especially at the small glint of fear stroking the boy's tone. "Nothing, we never had a chance to explain the circumstances to him. Why?"

"It's best to keep it that way. Mikhail told me so."

"What else did he tell you?"

"That the Pope is not to be trusted."

Frau nodded, surprised at the sudden twist in the road. He knew complications would arise, but this information: he would keep it to himself for the time being, not even share them with Castor. The man seemed awfully jumpy lately.

"That fucking angel sure didn't tell me a whole lot," Frau sighed as he untangled himself from Teito and placed the teen back in bed. After swaddling him up with the blankets again, and taking half of one for himself, he hugged Teito close and released a tired sigh.

"Teito, promise me you won't go after the Eye of Mikhail without me."

"Frau," his tone was devastated, distraught, but he sighed and nodded his compliance.

"Thank you."

And with that, Teito knew, Frau no longer trusted him.

Because there was sarcasm lurking beneath that appreciative tone, and the strong hold the blond had around him was not loving or gentle, but frightened and possessive.

And the pain of losing Frau's trust hurt more than any pain Ayanami could inflict on his mortal body.

* * *

**A/N: So it's not what you would call a "good" ending, but it isn't a cliffhanger either! Or, you know, a **_**mean **_**one. But you'll be missing my cliffhangers soon enough because…this fic is coming to a close! *Dun Dun Dun Duuuuun!* I can see it, three updates left. Four if I feel crazy enough to do it. (I think I might have just jinxed myself. I said the same thing on my H fic; the thing was suppose to be a two chaptered ONE-SHOT. Look at the monstrosity now *facepalm*)**

**A/N2: Castor, actually, was the one who bought all of those clothes for Teito, not Frau. It was a peace offering. And he had a coupon. Just bringing this up because I'm never going to explain it. Tee-Hee. (I'm doing that alot, aren't I? Not explaining things, I mean.)  
**

**A/N3: Sorry, I have no preview for you guys ):**


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